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Can culture save young Italians? The role of cultural capital on Italian NEETs behaviour

Author

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  • Chiara Burlina

    (GSSI, Gran Sasso Science Institute)

  • Alessandro Crociata

    (GSSI, Gran Sasso Science Institute)

  • Iacopo Odoardi

    (University of Chieti-Pescara)

Abstract

The increasing number of young people who do not study and do not work has become a relevant and timely socioeconomic issue. The role of the economic family background and the social context mitigate the risk of being not in education, employment or training (NEET). However, other factors such as evident regional disparities, suggest the need to investigate alternative remedies, in particular for the Italian context. Among these, we focus on cultural capital (CC) as a driver to discourage school dropout and a stimulus for pro-active behaviours in work participation. We test the role of CC (proxied by the accumulation of cultural experiences) on the rate of NEETs population in Centre-North and South Italy. We apply a panel vector autoregression (PVAR) approach to 2001–2018 regional NUTS2 data. Our findings highlight the positive effect of CC on NEET, and the impact is higher for southern regions. This result might represent a key of convergence between the two Italian geographical areas and pave the way for ad hoc policy measures to reduce the risk of becoming NEET.

Suggested Citation

  • Chiara Burlina & Alessandro Crociata & Iacopo Odoardi, 2021. "Can culture save young Italians? The role of cultural capital on Italian NEETs behaviour," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 38(3), pages 943-969, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:epolit:v:38:y:2021:i:3:d:10.1007_s40888-021-00219-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s40888-021-00219-7
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    NEET; Cultural capital; Human capital; Panel data; North–south divide;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics

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