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on Gender |
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Issue of 2024‒01‒15
eight papers chosen by Jan Sauermann, Institutet för Arbetsmarknads- och Utbildningspolitisk Utvärdering |
| By: | Müge Süer (HU Berlin) |
| Abstract: | The gender wage gap is to a significant extent driven by gender-based job segregation. One of the potential culprits can be found in supply-side behavioral differences in promotion applications. In this study, using a controlled lab experiment, we disentangle the roles of gender, field of study, and task difficulty in promotion application decisions. Our study pro- vides three crucial findings. First, gender differences in self-limiting promotion application behavior are only present in STEM field students when exposed to a male task. Specifi- cally, when an easier alternative is available, women are less willing to apply for promotions concerning harder tasks than men. Second, there exists no significant difference between men’s and women’s willingness to apply for promotion concerning female jobs in STEM or non-STEM fields. Third, we find that previously reported gender differences in confidence are present only between STEM field students. The results also suggest that self-sorting into positions does not cause a decrease in overall welfare, however, it causes fewer promotions for women in STEM. We finally propose an easy-to-implement policy intervention to close the gender gap in STEM students when applying for a promotion. |
| Keywords: | gender differences; promotion application; self-limiting behavior; hierarchical segregation; STEM; male task; experiment; |
| JEL: | D91 J16 J62 C91 |
| Date: | 2023–12–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rco:dpaper:483&r=gen |
| By: | Tünde Lénárd (Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, SOFI, Stockholm University); Hubert János Kiss (Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Corvinus University of Budapest); Dániel Horn (Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, Corvinus University of Budapest) |
| Abstract: | The gender gap in competitiveness is argued to explain gender differences in later life outcomes, including career choices and the gender wage gap. In experimental settings, a prevalent explanation attributes this gap to males being more (over)confident than females (we call this the compositional channel). While our lab-in-the-field study using data from students in 53 classrooms (N$>$1000) reproduces this finding, it also uncovers a second, potentially more impactful channel of confidence contributing to the gender gap in competitiveness (the preference channel). To disentangle the two channels, we propose a more precise measure of confidence based on whether the subjects’ believed performance rank exceeds, coincides with or falls short of their actual performance in a real-effort task. We label categories of this Guessed - Actual Performance (GAP) difference as overconfident, realistic or underconfident, respectively. Surprisingly, there is no gender difference in competitiveness within the over- and underconfident subgroups, while a significant gender gap exists among the realistic. So, even if both genders had the same level of confidence, a persistent gender gap in preference (or taste) for competition would remain in the realistic group. This finding is robust across all specifications, challenging previous theories about the overconfidence of men being the sole driver of the relationship between confidence and the gender gap in competition. |
| Keywords: | Keywords: adolescents, competitiveness, confidence, gender, experiment |
| JEL: | C9 D91 J16 |
| Date: | 2023–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:2327&r=gen |
| By: | MA, Xinxin; CHENG, Jie |
| Abstract: | Using national longitudinal survey data from the China Family Panel Studies from 2010 to 2020, this study explores union effects on the gender wage gap in China. The results demonstrate that the union wage premium is greater for women than men; the union wage premium beneficial for women in the public sector is greater than that in the private sector. The gender gap in the probability of obtaining union membership is insignificant for both the public and private sectors. Discrimination against women among the non-union group is the main factor generating the gender wage gap for both the public and private sectors, and the effect in the public sector is greater than that in the private sector. Additionally, the gender gap in unionism reduces the gender wage gap in the public sector while it widens the wage gap in the private sector, and the endowment differences reduce the gender wage gap in both the public and private sectors. |
| Keywords: | union membership, gender wage gap, discrimination, public and private sector, China |
| JEL: | J51 J52 J16 J31 J71 |
| Date: | 2023–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hit:hituec:752&r=gen |
| By: | Marchionni Mariana; Berniell Inés; Gaspatini Leonardo; Viollaz Mariana |
| Abstract: | Asymmetry in childcare responsibilities is one of the main reasons behind gender gaps in the labor market. In that context, the ability to work from home may alleviate the hindrances of women with children to participate in the labor market. We study these issues in Latin America, a region with wide gender gaps, in the framework of a major shock that severely affected employment: the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, we estimate models of job loss exploiting micro data from the World Bank’ s high-frequency phone household surveys conducted immediately after the onset of the pandemic. We find that the mitigating effect of working from home on the severity of job losses was especially relevant for women with children. These effects were larger in countries/periods in which the containment measures implemented by governments against the spread of the disease were more stringent. The results are consistent with a plausible mechanism: due to the traditional distribution of childcare responsibilities within the household, women with children were more likely to stay home during school closures, and therefore the ability to work from home was crucial for them to keep their jobs. |
| JEL: | D63 J01 J16 J22 |
| Date: | 2022–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:aep:anales:4612&r=gen |
| By: | Luna Bellani (University of Ulm, IZA and AXA Research Lab on Gender Equality of Dondena Research Center); Marisa Hidalgo-Hidalgo (Department of Economics, Universidad Pablo de Olavide) |
| Abstract: | Gender disparity is present in many aspects of life, especially in politics. This paper provides new evidence on the impact of women’s education on political representation focusing on several European countries. We combine multi-country data from the Gender Statistics Database of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) and from the European Social Survey (ESS). We find increased female education significantly raises the percentage of women being elected to regional parliaments. We then explore possible channels at the individual level and find education increases women’s interest in politics and induces more egalitarian views about gender roles in society among women, although it fails to do so among men. |
| Keywords: | education, female political participation, compulsory schooling reforms, ESS. |
| JEL: | H52 I21 I23 J24 J31 |
| Date: | 2023 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pab:wpaper:23.12&r=gen |
| By: | Anna Fruttero; Diego B. P. Gomes; Nishtha Sharma |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the impact of women’s legal rights on labor force participation decisions made by women and men through a granular analysis of 35 gendered laws. Building on previous literature, it departs from the analysis using aggregate indices due to concerns about (i) the usability of an index for policymaking purposes, (ii) the economic interpretation of an index’s average marginal effects, (iii) and the implicit assumption of homogeneous effects underlying regressions with an index. The findings identify nine key laws that can foster female labor force participation. Notably, laws related to household dynamics and women’s agency within the family, such as divorce and property rights laws, and laws regarding the ability of women to travel outside the home, are especially important in influencing their decision to work. The paper also shows that improving women’s legal rights does not improve their labor force participation through a substitution effect as it has no systematic negative effect on men’s labor force participation. |
| Keywords: | Gender gaps; Gendered laws; Legal barriers; Labor force participation |
| Date: | 2023–12–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfwpa:2023/252&r=gen |
| By: | Ghada Barsoum |
| Abstract: | Do employers discriminate against married women? This research submitted fictitious resumes to online job postings in Egypt, randomizing gender and marital status. More job postings explicitly required men (14 per cent) than women (4 per cent). Despite the gender discrimination in postings, women were only slightly less likely to receive callbacks than men, with only a small difference between single and married women. Differences in callbacks by sex and marital status were not statistically significant. Women and especially married women were, however, particularly likely to be asked for more information rather than scheduled for an interview. The findings suggest that the low employment rate of women and especially married women in Egypt, at least in the segment of the labour market we are able to examine, is not primarily due to employer discrimination at the callback stage. |
| Date: | 2023–11–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:erg:wpaper:swp20232&r=gen |
| By: | Anukriti, S (World Bank); Calvi, Rossella (Rice University); Chakravarty, Abhishek (University of Essex) |
| Abstract: | Can effective policy implementation change political selection by inducing voters to prioritize leader competence over other traits, such as gender? We answer this question by examining the impact of a successful school-expansion program on the likelihood of women being elected to state legislatures in India. We show that the program increased voter prioritization of leader competence over gender, boosting the share of women among candidates and state parliamentarians and the overall capability of elected officials. These findings are consistent with the predictions of a model of candidate self-selection where voters trade-off candidate competence with their bias against female leaders. |
| Keywords: | DPEP, political selection, India, leader competence, female leaders, gender |
| JEL: | J16 I24 O12 |
| Date: | 2023–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16639&r=gen |