  Sex education can impact pupils sexual activity and convey the social norms
regarding family formation and responsibility, which can have significant
consequences to their future. To investigate the life-cycle effects of social
norm transmission, this study draws on the introduction of comprehensive sex
education in the curriculum of Swedish primary schools during the 1940s to the
1950s. Inspired by social-democratic values, sex education during this period
taught students about abstinence, rational family planning choices, and the
importance of taking social responsibility for their personal decisions. The
study applies a state-of-the-art estimator of the difference-in-differences
method to various outcomes of men and women throughout the life cycle. The
results show that the reform affected most intended outcomes for men and women,
ultimately decreasing gender inequality in earnings. The effects of the reform
also extended to the succeeding generation of girls. Both generations created a
critical mass that altered social norms in favor of collective engagement and
democracy. The findings suggest that social norms, internalized through
school-based sex education, persistently affect peoples outcomes in significant
ways.
