Changing Income Risk across the US Skill Distribution: Evidence from a Generalized Kalman Filter

S-Tier
Journal: American Economic Review
Year: 2025
Volume: 115
Issue: 12
Pages: 4438-75

Authors (4)

J. Carter Braxton (not in RePEc) Kyle Herkenhoff (not in RePEc) Jonathan Rothbaum (George Washington University) Lawrence Schmidt (not in RePEc)

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 4 authors) × 4.0x S-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

For whom has earnings risk changed, and why? We answer these questions by combining the Kalman filter and EM algorithm to estimate persistent and temporary earnings for every individual at every point in time. We apply our method to administrative earnings linked with survey data. We show that since the 1980s, persistent earnings risk rose by 12.5 percent for both employed and unemployed workers and the scarring effects of unemployment doubled. At the same time, temporary earnings risk declined. Using education and occupation codes, we show that rising persistent earnings risk is concentrated among high-skill workers and related to technology adoption.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:aea:aecrev:v:115:y:2025:i:12:p:4438-75
Journal Field
General
Author Count
4
Added to Database
2026-01-29