LOWERING STANDARDS TO WED? SPOUSE QUALITY, MARRIAGE, AND LABOR MARKET RESPONSES TO THE GENDERWAGE GAP

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Shenhav, Na'ama
• 署名单位: Dartmouth College
• 刊物名称: REVIEW OF ECONOMICS AND STATISTICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0034-6535
• DOI: 10.1162/rest_a_00919
• 发表日期: 2021-05
• 页码: 265-279
• 关键词: technological-change; wage inequality; skill content; sex-ratio; female; demand; TRENDS; POWER; pill; AGE

摘要

This paper examines the effect of the female-to-male wage ratio, relativewage, onwomen's spouse quality, marriage, and labor supply over three decades. Exploiting task-based demand shifts as a shock to relative pay, I find that a higher relative wage (a) increases the quality of women's mates, as measured by higher spousal education; (b) reduces marriagewithout substitution to cohabitation; and (c) raises women's hours of work. These effects are consistent with a model in which a higher relative wage increases the minimum nonpecuniary benefits (quality) women require from a spouse and therefore reduce marriage among low-quality husbands.