Do different dimensions of male high school students' skills predict labor market success a decade later? Evidence from the NLSY

This paper uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to examine whether measures of the skills of male teenagers predict their wages at ages 27 and 28. Three types of skills are examined: academic skills, skill at completing elementary mental tasks quickly and accurately, and self-esteem. Psychological literature supports the position that self-esteem may predict subsequent wages because it predicts the ability to work productively in groups and perseverance in the face of adversity. The results show that all three types of skills play roles in predicting subsequent wages. The different skills are of differing importance in explaining gaps between the average wages of White males and those of Black males and Hispanic males. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.