Married women's property laws and female commercial activity: Evidence from United States patent records, 1790-1895
成果类型：
Article; Proceedings Paper
署名作者：
Khan, BZ
刊物名称：
JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC HISTORY
ISSN/ISSBN：
0022-0507
DOI：
10.1017/S002205070001648X
发表日期：
1996
页码：
356-388
关键词：
摘要：
Nineteenth-century laws granted wives previously withheld rights to their own properly and earnings as well as liability for debts and contracts. I use 4,198 women's patents to assess whether these laws encouraged greater female commercial activity. Patentees were motivated by potential profits and were responsive to market; incentives. Women's patenting jumped significantly in states with legal reforms and was lowest in states without such laws. Much of the subsequent increase occurred in metropolitan centers where property rights were of greater concern. Thus, by reducing transactions costs and increasing expected benefits, legal reforms arguably stimulated women's investments in patenting and commercial activities.