Hard work and perseverance will always be ingredients for success, but higher inequality has sharply tilted the landscape and made having successful parents, if not essential, certainly a central part of the recipe. American children raised at the top, and at the bottom, are more likely to land on the same rung of the income ladder as their fathers than their Canadian counterparts. More than one-quarter of sons raised by fathers in the top 10 percent stay in the top 10 percent as adults, and another quarter fall no further than the top third. Meanwhile, half of those raised by fathers in the bottom 10 percent remain at the bottom or rise no further than the bottom third. In Canada there is less stickiness at the top, and children raised in the bottom are more likely to rise to the top half in earnings.
努力工作和坚持不懈是成功的要素， 但更大的不平等已经在加剧失衡这种情况了。 拥有成功的父母， 不说一定是成功的决定性因素， 但确实是成功秘诀的核心。与加拿大的孩子相比， 在美国各个阶层长大的孩子更有可能和他们的父亲处于同一收入阶层。 10%的富人父亲抚养长大的儿子有超过四分之一成年后收入仍保持在前10%， 另外四分之一的儿子收入位列在收入的前三分之一。 与此同时， 处在收入底层的10%的父亲抚养长大的孩子中， 有一半孩子仍然处于收入底层， 或者收入不会高于底层的三分之一。 在加拿大， 顶层阶级固化没那么严重， 处于社会底层的孩子更有可能进入社会顶层。