Does Compulsory Schooling Affect Innovation? Evidence from the United States

Objective U.S. states adopted compulsory schooling laws between 1852 and 1929. This is the first study to empirically test the historical relationship between the adoption of state‐level compulsory schooling laws and measures of innovation and entrepreneurship such as the number of patents per capita and output per worker. Methods We use difference‐in‐difference and event study methods to estimate the effects of these laws. Results Our results suggest that the adoption of compulsory schooling in the United States reduced patents per capita and output per worker over time. Conclusion Compulsory schooling laws may have reduced innovation and productivity by reducing home education in favor of formal schooling or by changing the nature of formal schooling.