Education and Selection Into Ethnic Identification: Evidence from Roma People in Romania

This paper examines how ethnic identification varies with education among Roma people, Europe’s largest ethnic minority. Using linked Romanian census data and birth records, the authors study changes in reported ethnicity over time, a phenomenon known as “passing.” Roma identification declines sharply with education, from about 80 percent among individuals with no education to 40 percent among postsecondary graduates. Estimating a model with persistent individual heterogeneity, the authors find that the true number of Roma postsecondary graduates is three to six times higher than suggested by official statistics. Original survey evidence indicates that most Romanians are unaware of these patterns. The results suggest that selective ethnic passing may reinforce stereotypes and misperceptions about marginalized groups.