Work

Adult children's education and elderly parents' energy poverty: Evidence from China

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This paper investigates the intergenerational impact of adult children's education on elderly parents' energy poverty. Utilizing data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), we find that higher levels of children's education significantly reduce parents' energy poverty. Our results are robust across various measures of energy poverty and children's education. To address the issue of endogeneity, we employ China's Compulsory Education Law as an instrumental variable for children's education. Heterogeneity tests show that the reduction effect is more pronounced in rural areas compared to urban areas, in families with male children relative to those with female children, in parents with lower levels of education, and in regions with higher educational quality. Intergenerational financial transfers, the digital divide, and social capital are identified as three potential underlying mechanisms through which children's education affects parents' energy poverty. These findings offer a new perspective on the driving forces behind energy poverty, underscoring the significance of intergenerational effects. • CFPS data shows higher education levels of adult children significantly reduce parents' energy poverty. • To address endogeneity, we use China's Compulsory Education Law as an instrumental variable for children's education. • The effect is stronger in rural areas, families with sons, less-educated parents, and regions with better education quality. • Financial transfers, the digital divide, and social capital are key mechanisms linking children's education to energy poverty. • Expanding education, subsidies for vulnerable households, and energy poverty awareness in curricula can help alleviate energy poverty.

Source: Energy Policy

DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114604

Authors: Hongwu Gan, Chuan Lin, Yang Zhou, Zhiyi Zhuo

Institutions: Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Wuhan University, Peking University

Language: English

Topic: Energy and Environment Impacts

Subfield: Pollution

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Reduced inequalities, No poverty, Quality education

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,940