%0 Report
        %A Cobb-Clark, Deborah A.
%A Dahmann, Sarah C.
%A Kamhöfer, Daniel A.
%A Schildberg-Hörisch, Hannah
        %T Self-Control: Determinants, Life Outcomes and Intergenerational Implications
        %D 2019
        %8 2019 Jul
        %I Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        %C Bonn
        %7 IZA Discussion Paper
        %N 12488
        %U https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp12488
        %X This paper studies self-control in a nationally representative sample. Using the well-established Tangney scale to measure trait self-control, we find that people's age as well as the political and economic institutions they are exposed to have an economically meaningful impact on their level of self-control. A higher degree of self-control is, in turn, associated with better health, educational and labor market outcomes as well as greater financial and overall well-being. Parents' self-control is linked to reduced behavioral problems among their children. Importantly, we demonstrate that self-control is a key behavioral economic construct which adds significant explanatory power beyond other more commonly studied personality traits and economic preference parameters. Our results suggest that self-control is potentially a good target for intervention policies.
        %K personality traits
%K Tangney scale
%K self-control
%K intergenerational transmission