Luck and Predictability in the Life Course
Abstract
There is an emerging recognition among sociological theorists that luck may play a substantial role in life course achievement. There is also a nascent empirical literature that finds life outcomes to be unpredictable and unexpected life events to be a likely cause. A third literature of causal event studies provides thousands of point estimates of the life course consequences of random events. This review brings these literatures together under a unified framework.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Decision-Making and Behavioral Economics
Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
Financial Literacy
Pension
Retirement Analysis
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Annual Review of Sociology
- Publisher
- Annual Reviews
- Volume
- 52
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 319–339
- Publication date
- 24 April 2026
- Language
- EN