IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jeborg/v188y2021icp916-932.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Do gender wage differences within households influence women's empowerment and welfare? Evidence from Ghana

Author

Listed:
  • Danquah, Michael
  • Iddrisu, Abdul Malik
  • Boakye, Ernest Owusu
  • Owusu, Solomon

Abstract

Using household data from the latest wave of the Ghana Living Standards Survey, this paper utilizes machine learning techniques – IV LASSO – that allows for the treatment of unconfoundedness in the selection of observables and unobservables to examine the structural effect of gender wage differences within households on women's empowerment and welfare in Ghana. The structural parameters of the IV LASSO estimations show that a reduction in household gender wage gap significantly enhances women's empowerment. Also, a decline in household gender wage gap results meaningfully in improving household and women's welfare. Particularly, the increasing effect on women's welfare resulting from decreases in household gender wage differences is much higher than for the household welfare. The findings showcase the need to vigorously adopt policies that both increase the quantity and quality of jobs for women and address gender barriers that inhibit women from accessing these jobs opportunities in sub-Saharan Africa.

Suggested Citation

  • Danquah, Michael & Iddrisu, Abdul Malik & Boakye, Ernest Owusu & Owusu, Solomon, 2021. "Do gender wage differences within households influence women's empowerment and welfare? Evidence from Ghana," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 188(C), pages 916-932.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:188:y:2021:i:c:p:916-932
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jebo.2021.06.014
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016726812100247X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jebo.2021.06.014?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Francine D. Blau & Lawrence M. Kahn, 2006. "The U.S. Gender Pay Gap in the 1990S: Slowing Convergence," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 60(1), pages 45-66, October.
    2. Alexandre Belloni & Victor Chernozhukov & Christian Hansen & Damian Kozbur, 2016. "Inference in High-Dimensional Panel Models With an Application to Gun Control," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(4), pages 590-605, October.
    3. Victor Chernozhukov & Christian Hansen & Martin Spindler, 2015. "Post-Selection and Post-Regularization Inference in Linear Models with Many Controls and Instruments," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(5), pages 486-490, May.
    4. Francine D. Blau & Lawrence M. Kahn, 2017. "The Gender Wage Gap: Extent, Trends, and Explanations," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(3), pages 789-865, September.
    5. Flinn, Christopher J. & Todd, Petra E & Zhang, Weilong, 2018. "Personality traits, intra-household allocation and the gender wage gap," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 191-220.
    6. Oaxaca, Ronald, 1973. "Male-Female Wage Differentials in Urban Labor Markets," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 14(3), pages 693-709, October.
    7. Manisha Desai, 2010. "Hope in Hard Times: Women’s Empowerment and Human Development," Human Development Research Papers (2009 to present) HDRP-2010-14, Human Development Report Office (HDRO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
    8. David Cuberes & Marc Teignier, 2016. "Aggregate Effects of Gender Gaps in the Labor Market: A Quantitative Estimate," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 10(1), pages 1-32.
    9. Cheryl Doss, 2013. "Intrahousehold Bargaining and Resource Allocation in Developing Countries-super-1," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 28(1), pages 52-78, February.
    10. Matthias Doepke & Michèle Tertilt, 2019. "Does female empowerment promote economic development?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 24(4), pages 309-343, December.
    11. Barro, Robert J. & Lee, Jong-Wha, 1994. "Sources of economic growth," Carnegie-Rochester Conference Series on Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 1-46, June.
    12. Becker, Gary S, 1985. "Human Capital, Effort, and the Sexual Division of Labor," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 3(1), pages 33-58, January.
    13. A. Belloni & D. Chen & V. Chernozhukov & C. Hansen, 2012. "Sparse Models and Methods for Optimal Instruments With an Application to Eminent Domain," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 80(6), pages 2369-2429, November.
    14. Kristy Eastough & Paul W. Miller, 2004. "The Gender Wage Gap in Paid‐ and Self‐Employment in Australia," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(3), pages 257-276, September.
    15. Garikipati, Supriya, 2008. "The Impact of Lending to Women on Household Vulnerability and Women's Empowerment: Evidence from India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(12), pages 2620-2642, December.
    16. Mohammad Mafizur Rahman & Rasheda Khanam & Son Nghiem, 2017. "The effects of microfinance on women’s empowerment: new evidence from Bangladesh," International Journal of Social Economics, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 44(12), pages 1745-1757, December.
    17. Alan S. Blinder, 1973. "Wage Discrimination: Reduced Form and Structural Estimates," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 8(4), pages 436-455.
    18. Kapsos, Steven., 2008. "The gender wage gap in Bangladesh," ILO Working Papers 994134173402676, International Labour Organization.
    19. Francine D. Blau & Lawrence M. Kahn, 2000. "Gender Differences in Pay," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 14(4), pages 75-99, Fall.
    20. Cheryl Doss, 2006. "The Effects of Intrahousehold Property Ownership on Expenditure Patterns in Ghana," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 15(1), pages 149-180, March.
    21. Ipek Ilkkaracan & Raziye Selim, 2007. "The Gender Wage Gap in the Turkish Labor Market," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 21(3), pages 563-593, September.
    22. Alexandre Belloni & Victor Chernozhukov & Christian Hansen, 2014. "High-Dimensional Methods and Inference on Structural and Treatment Effects," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 28(2), pages 29-50, Spring.
    23. Daniela Casale & Dorrit Posel, 2011. "Unions and the Gender Wage Gap in South Africa," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 20(1), pages 27-59, January.
    24. Felix Meier zu Selhausen, 2016. "What Determines Women's Participation in Collective Action? Evidence from a Western Ugandan Coffee Cooperative," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 130-157, January.
    25. Leeb, Hannes & Pötscher, Benedikt M., 2008. "Can One Estimate The Unconditional Distribution Of Post-Model-Selection Estimators?," Econometric Theory, Cambridge University Press, vol. 24(2), pages 338-376, April.
    26. Stephan Klasen, 2002. "Low Schooling for Girls, Slower Growth for All? Cross-Country Evidence on the Effect of Gender Inequality in Education on Economic Development," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 16(3), pages 345-373, December.
    27. Reimers, Cordelia W, 1983. "Labor Market Discrimination against Hispanic and Black Men," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 65(4), pages 570-579, November.
    28. Stephen Knowles & Paula K. Lorgelly, 2002. "Are educational gender gaps a brake on economic development? Some cross-country empirical evidence," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 54(1), pages 118-149, January.
    29. Galor, Oded & Weil, David N, 1996. "The Gender Gap, Fertility, and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 86(3), pages 374-387, June.
    30. Victor Chernozhukov & Ivan Fernandez-Val & Christian Hansen, 2013. "Program evaluation with high-dimensional data," CeMMAP working papers CWP57/13, Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    31. Ahmed, Salma & McGillivray, Mark, 2015. "Human Capital, Discrimination, and the Gender Wage Gap in Bangladesh," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 506-524.
    32. Esther Duflo & Christopher Udry, 2003. "Intrahousehold Resource Allocation in Côte D'ivoire: Social Norms, Separate Accounts and Consumption Choices," Working Papers 857, Economic Growth Center, Yale University.
    33. David Neumark, 1988. "Employers' Discriminatory Behavior and the Estimation of Wage Discrimination," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 23(3), pages 279-295.
    34. Kristin J. Forbes, 2000. "A Reassessment of the Relationship between Inequality and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(4), pages 869-887, September.
    35. Sayed Samer Ali Al-shami & R. M. Razali & Nurulizwa Rashid, 2018. "The Effect of Microcredit on Women Empowerment in Welfare and Decisions Making in Malaysia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 137(3), pages 1073-1090, June.
    36. Ranjula Bali Swain & Fan Yang Wallentin, 2009. "Does microfinance empower women? Evidence from self-help groups in India," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(5), pages 541-556.
    37. Barbara R. Bergmann, 1974. "Occupational Segregation, Wages and Profits When Employers Discriminate by Race or Sex," Eastern Economic Journal, Eastern Economic Association, vol. 1(2), pages 103-110, April.
    38. Kim, J.C. & Watts, C.H. & Hargreaves, J.R. & Ndhlovu, L.X. & Phetla, G. & Morison, L.A. & Busza, J. & Porter, J.D.H. & Pronyk, P., 2007. "Understanding the impact of a microfinance-based intervention on women's empowerment and the reduction of intimate partner violence in South Africa," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 97(10), pages 1794-1802.
    39. Alkire, Sabina & Meinzen-Dick, Ruth & Peterman, Amber & Quisumbing, Agnes & Seymour, Greg & Vaz, Ana, 2013. "The Women’s Empowerment in Agriculture Index," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 71-91.
    40. Doss, Cheryl, 2013. "Intrahousehold bargaining and resource allocation in developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 6337, The World Bank.
    41. Diego F. Angel‐Urdinola & Quentin Wodon, 2006. "The Gender Wage Gap and Poverty in Colombia," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 20(4), pages 721-739, December.
    42. Emmanuel Adu Boahen & Kwadwo Opoku, 2021. "Gender wage gaps in Ghana: A comparison across different selection models," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2021-10, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    43. Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, 2008. "Transitions: Career and Family Life Cycles of the Educational Elite," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 98(2), pages 363-369, May.
    44. Shaheen Akter, 2005. "Occupational Segregation, Wage Discrimination, and Impact on Poverty In Rural Bangladesh," Journal of Developing Areas, Tennessee State University, College of Business, vol. 39(1), pages 15-39, September.
    45. Seguino, Stephanie, 2000. "Gender Inequality and Economic Growth: A Cross-Country Analysis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 28(7), pages 1211-1230, July.
    46. Marcos A. Rangel, 2006. "Alimony Rights and Intrahousehold Allocation of Resources: Evidence from Brazil," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(513), pages 627-658, July.
    47. Anna Aizer, 2010. "The Gender Wage Gap and Domestic Violence," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1847-1859, September.
    48. Tanja Winther & Margaret N. Matinga & Kirsten Ulsrud & Karina Standal, 2017. "Women’s empowerment through electricity access: scoping study and proposal for a framework of analysis," Journal of Development Effectiveness, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(3), pages 389-417, July.
    49. Pitt, Mark M & Khandker, Shahidur R & Cartwright, Jennifer, 2006. "Empowering Women with Micro Finance: Evidence from Bangladesh," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 54(4), pages 791-831, July.
    50. Salma Ahmed & Pushkar Maitra, 2010. "Gender Wage Discrimination in Rural and Urban Labour Markets of Bangladesh," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(1), pages 83-112.
    51. Allendorf, Keera, 2007. "Do Women's Land Rights Promote Empowerment and Child Health in Nepal?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 35(11), pages 1975-1988, November.
    52. repec:ilo:ilowps:413417 is not listed on IDEAS
    53. Nopo, Hugo R. & Daza, Nancy & Ramos, Johanna, 2011. "Gender Earnings Gaps in the World," IZA Discussion Papers 5736, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    54. Shelly J. Lundberg & Robert A. Pollak & Terence J. Wales, 1997. "Do Husbands and Wives Pool Their Resources? Evidence from the United Kingdom Child Benefit," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 32(3), pages 463-480.
    55. Phelps, Edmund S, 1972. "The Statistical Theory of Racism and Sexism," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(4), pages 659-661, September.
    56. World Bank, 2012. "World Development Report 2012 [Rapport sur le développement dans le monde 2012]," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 4391, December.
    57. repec:pri:indrel:dsp01gb19f581g is not listed on IDEAS
    58. Haroon Bhorat & Sumayya Goga, 2013. "The Gender Wage Gap in Post-Apartheid South Africa: A Re-examination," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 22(5), pages 827-848, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ding, Yawen & Wang, Xiaobing & Qiu, Huanguang, 2022. "Gift of relocation: Women’s decision making power consequences of China’s poverty alleviation relocation program," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322535, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    2. Li, Qiang & An, Lian & Zhang, Ren, 2023. "Corruption drives brain drain: Cross-country evidence from machine learning," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    3. Herrera, Gabriel Paes & Constantino, Michel & Su, Jen-Je & Naranpanawa, Athula, 2023. "The use of ICTs and income distribution in Brazil: A machine learning explanation using SHAP values," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(8).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Marisetty, Vijaya Bhaskar & Prasad, Salu, 2022. "On the side effects of mandatory gender diversity laws in corporate boards," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    2. Mara José Montenegro Guerra & Sandeep Mohapatra & Brent Swallow, 2019. "What influence do empowered women have? Land and the reality of women’s relative power in Peru," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 17(4), pages 1225-1255, December.
    3. Bonaccolto-Töpfer, Marina & Briel, Stephanie, 2022. "The gender pay gap revisited: Does machine learning offer new insights?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    4. Adida, Claire L. & Laitin, David D. & Valfort, Marie-Anne, 2012. "Gender, Economic Development and Islam: A Perspective from France," IZA Discussion Papers 6421, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Manuel Santos Silva & Stephan Klasen, 2021. "Gender inequality as a barrier to economic growth: a review of the theoretical literature," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 19(3), pages 581-614, September.
    6. Jacqueline Mosomi, 2019. "Distributional changes in the gender wage gap in the post-apartheid South African labour market," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2019-17, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    7. Anderson, C. Leigh & Reynolds, Travis W. & Gugerty, Mary Kay, 2017. "Husband and Wife Perspectives on Farm Household Decision-making Authority and Evidence on Intra-household Accord in Rural Tanzania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 90(C), pages 169-183.
    8. Avinno Faruk, 2021. "Analysing the glass ceiling and sticky floor effects in Bangladesh: evidence, extent and elements," SN Business & Economics, Springer, vol. 1(9), pages 1-23, September.
    9. Romina Kazandjian & Lisa Kolovich & Kalpana Kochhar & Monique Newiak, 2019. "Gender Equality and Economic Diversification," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-24, April.
    10. Baliamoune–Lutz, Mina & McGillivray, Mark, 2015. "The impact of gender inequality in education on income in Africa and the Middle East," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 1-11.
    11. Schober, Thomas & Winter-Ebmer, Rudolf, 2011. "Gender Wage Inequality and Economic Growth: Is There Really a Puzzle?--A Comment," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(8), pages 1476-1484, August.
    12. Olivier Bargain & Maria C. Lo Bue, 2021. "The economic gains of closing the employment gender gap: Evidence from Morocco," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2021-79, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    13. Schober, Thomas & Winter-Ebmer, Rudolf, 2009. "Gender Wage Inequality and Economic Growth: Is There Really a Puzzle?," IZA Discussion Papers 4323, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Dominique Meurs & Sophie Ponthieux, 2006. "L'écart des salaires entre les femmes et les hommes peut-il encore baisser ?," Économie et Statistique, Programme National Persée, vol. 398(1), pages 99-129.
    15. Carla Canelas & Silvia Salazar, 2014. "Gender and ethnic inequalities in LAC countries," IZA Journal of Labor & Development, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 3(1), pages 1-15, December.
    16. Ding, Yawen & Wang, Xiaobing & Qiu, Huanguang, 2022. "Gift of relocation: Women’s decision making power consequences of China’s poverty alleviation relocation program," 2022 Annual Meeting, July 31-August 2, Anaheim, California 322535, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    17. Carla Canelas & Silvia Salazar, 2014. "Gender and Ethnicity in Bolivia, Ecuador and Guatemala," Documents de travail du Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne 14021, Université Panthéon-Sorbonne (Paris 1), Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne.
    18. Tamar Khitarishvili, 2018. "Gender Pay Gaps in the Former Soviet Union: A Review of the Evidence," Economics Working Paper Archive wp_899, Levy Economics Institute.
    19. Astrid Sneyers & Anneleen Vandeplas, 2013. "Girl Power in Agricultural Production: How Much Does it Yield? A Case-Study on the Dairy Sector in India," LICOS Discussion Papers 34113, LICOS - Centre for Institutions and Economic Performance, KU Leuven.
    20. Maria Kravtsova & Aleksey Oshchepkov, 2019. "Market And Network Corruption," HSE Working papers WP BRP 209/EC/2019, National Research University Higher School of Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Household gender wage differences; Women's empowerment; Welfare; IV LASSO; Ghana;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C18 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Methodolical Issues: General
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jeborg:v:188:y:2021:i:c:p:916-932. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jebo .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.