Lecture Notes: Do Names Matter?

Introduction

• Speaker: Lion
• Topic: The significance of names and their impact on life
• Personal Anecdote:
  • Speaker's name story: Named after the father's Chinese name translating to "Lion."
  • Father's name was changed from Lion to Peter.

Question Posed

• Do names matter?
• Can a name predict life outcomes such as marital partner, residence, career, or political preferences?

How We Get Our Names

• Most Common Method: Named after family members
  • Statistics: 49% of babies are named after ancestors in the U.S.
  • Religious or sentimental reasons: Account for 20% of these names

Names Intended to Influence

• Trendy Names: Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Stanford
  • Intended to imbue prestige
• Aspirational Names: Princess, Winner
  • Intended to imbue certain qualities

Research on Names and Life Outcomes

• Study (1948, Harvard): Common names like Mike linked to higher course pass rates
• Predictive Power: Names can suggest location, career, income, marital partner, charity contribution preferences
• 2006 Study, England:
  • Boys with uncommon or "girly" names more likely to misbehave
  • Girls with girly names gravitate towards humanities; androgynous names towards STEM

Name Influence on Race

• 2004 Experiment by University of Chicago & Harvard:

  • Identical resumes with different racial typified names
  • White-sounding names received 50% more callbacks than black-sounding names

• Socioeconomic Status Influence:

  • More powerful indicator than names
  • Wealth correlates with better educational and career outcomes

Conclusion

• Do Names Matter?
  • Yes, in a broad sense.
  • Names become part of identity and can impact life in small ways
  • However, socioeconomic status is a stronger determinant of life outcomes.
• Final Thought: Although names can have some impact, they do not make or break a person's life.