Getting Ahead or Losing Ground: Economic Mobility in America

The belief that those who work hard can achieve success has made Americans more tolerant of inequality than citizens in other advanced nations. However, to succeed, Americans need the opportunity to get ahead. In a report from the Brookings Institution and the Economic Mobility Project, Brookings Scholars Julia Isaacs, Ron Haskins, and Isabel Sawhill summarize research and present new evidence regarding the extent of intergenerational economic mobility in the U.S. and the factors that impact it.