IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/femeco/v12y2006i4p643-665.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Economic Relations Between Women And Their Partners: An East And West German Comparison After Reunification

Author

Listed:
  • Heike Trappe
  • Annemette Sørensen

Abstract

This article compares women's and men's economic relations in East and West Germany following the 1990 reunification to exemplify the impact of varying opportunity structures on women's relative contribution to family income. West Germany's takeover set in motion a rapid transformation of East German institutions and employment structures. The analysis shows that women in West Germany became less dependent on their partners in the 1990s, largely because fewer women were housewives without earnings. In contrast, the contributions of women to the family economy in East Germany fell between 1990 and 1996. Afterwards, women in East Germany regained some of their economic power because of their partners' increasing difficulties sustaining employment. A multivariate analysis showed that the fact that women in West Germany were more likely to work less or not at all - especially if they were married or had children - accounted for much of the difference.

Suggested Citation

  • Heike Trappe & Annemette Sørensen, 2006. "Economic Relations Between Women And Their Partners: An East And West German Comparison After Reunification," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(4), pages 643-665.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:femeco:v:12:y:2006:i:4:p:643-665
    DOI: 10.1080/13545700600885255
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13545700600885255
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/13545700600885255?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 search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Gustafsson, Siv, 1992. "Separate Taxation and Married Women's Labor Supply: A Comparison of West Germany and Sweden," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 5(1), pages 61-85, February.
    2. Wolfgang Franz & Viktor Steiner, 2000. "Wages in the East German Transition Process: Facts and Explanations," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 1(3), pages 241-269, August.
    3. Heike Solga & Martin Diewald, 2001. "The East German Labour Market after German Unification: A Study of Structural Change and Occupational Matching," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 15(1), pages 95-126, March.
    4. Jennifer Hunt, 2004. "Convergence and determinants of non-employment durations in Eastern and Western Germany," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 17(2), pages 249-266, June.
    5. Thomas Lange & Geoffrey Pugh, 1998. "The Economics of German Unification," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 794.
    6. Elke Holst & Jürgen Schupp, 2001. "Erwerbsverhalten von Frauen: Trotz Annäherung immer noch deutliche Unterschiede zwischen Ost und West," DIW Wochenbericht, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 68(42), pages 648-658.
    7. Annemette Sorensen, 2001. "Gender equality in earnings at work and at home," LIS Working papers 251, LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg.
    8. Viktor Steiner & Katharina Wrohlich, 2004. "Household Taxation, Income Splitting and Labor Supply Incentives – A Microsimulation Study for Germany," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo, vol. 50(3), pages 541-568.
    9. Franz Wolfgang & Steiner Viktor, 2000. "Wages in the East German Transition Process: Facts and Explanations," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 1(3), pages 241-269, August.
    10. SOEP Group, 2001. "The German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) after More than 15 Years: Overview," Vierteljahrshefte zur Wirtschaftsforschung / Quarterly Journal of Economic Research, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research, vol. 70(1), pages 7-14.
    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. Anja‐Kristin Abendroth & Yvonne Lott & Lena Hipp & Dana Müller & Armin Sauermann & Tanja Carstensen, 2022. "Has the COVID‐19 pandemic changed gender‐ and parental‐status‐specific differences in working from home? Panel evidence from Germany," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(6), pages 1991-2011, November.
    2. Andreas Klärner & André Knabe, 2017. "On the normative foundations of marriage and cohabitation: Results from group discussions in eastern and western Germany," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 36(53), pages 1637-1666.
    3. Maximilian Sprengholz & Anna Wieber & Elke Holst, 2019. "Gender Identity and Wives' Labor Market Outcomes in West and East Germany between 1984 and 2016," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1799, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    4. Bonaccolto-Töpfer, Marina & Castagnetti, Carolina & Prümer, Stephanie, 2022. "Understanding the public-private sector wage gap in Germany: New evidence from a Fixed Effects quantile Approach∗," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 116(C).
    5. Karl Ulrich Mayer & Heike Solga, 2010. "Lebensverläufe im deutsch-deutschen Vereinigungsprozess," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 322, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    6. Madalozzo, Regina & Martins, Sergio R. & Shiratori, Ludmila, 2008. "Participação no Mercado de Trabalho e no Trabalho Doméstico: Homens e Mulheres têm Condições Iguais?," Insper Working Papers wpe_118, Insper Working Paper, Insper Instituto de Ensino e Pesquisa.
    7. Andreas Klärner, 2015. "The low importance of marriage in eastern Germany - social norms and the role of peoples’ perceptions of the past," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 33(9), pages 239-272.
    8. Christian Schmitt & Heike Trappe, 2014. "Geschlechterarrangements und Ehestabilität in Ost- und Westdeutschland," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 682, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    9. Liat Raz-Yurovich, 2012. "Normative and allocation role strain: role incompatibility, outsourcing, and the transition to a second birth in Eastern and Western Germany," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2012-024, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    10. Joshua R. Goldstein & Michaela R. Kreyenfeld, 2010. "East Germany overtakes West Germany: recent trends in order-specific fertility dynamics," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2010-033, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    11. Pedro Quintín Quílez, 2008. "Vida conyugal y desigualdades de género en Cali (Colombia)," Revista Sociedad y Economía, Universidad del Valle, CIDSE, August.
    12. Nicole Kapelle, 2021. "Why Time Cannot Heal All Wounds: Personal Wealth Trajectories of Divorced and Married Men and Women," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1134, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    13. Charlotte H. Feldhoff, 2021. "The Child Penalty: Implications of Parenthood on Labour Market Outcomes for Men and Women in Germany," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1120, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    14. Nicole Kapelle & Theresa Nutz & Daria Tisch & Manuel Schechtl & Philipp M. Lersch & Emanuela Struffolino, 2022. "My Wealth, (Y)Our Life Satisfaction? Sole and Joint Wealth Ownership and Life Satisfaction in Marriage," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 38(4), pages 811-834, October.

    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. repec:zbw:ifwkwp:1309 is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Merkl, Christian & Snower, Dennis J., 2008. "Escaping the unemployment trap: The case of East Germany," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(4), pages 542-556, December.
    3. Robert Orlowski & Regina T. Riphahn, 2008. "The East German Wage Structure after Transition," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 148, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    4. Orlowski, Robert & Riphahn, Regina T., 2008. "Seniority in Germany: New evidence on returns to tenure for male full-time workers," Zeitschrift für ArbeitsmarktForschung - Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 41(2/3), pages 139-155.
    5. Orlowski, Robert & Riphahn, Regina T., 2008. "Seniority in Germany: New evidence on returns to tenure for male full-time workers," Zeitschrift für ArbeitsmarktForschung - Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 41(2/3), pages 139-155.
    6. Orlowski, Robert & Riphahn, Regina T., 2008. "Seniority in Germany: New evidence on returns to tenure for male full-time workers," Zeitschrift für ArbeitsmarktForschung - Journal for Labour Market Research, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 41(2/3), pages 139-155.
    7. Heike Trappe & Annemette Sørensen, 2005. "Economic Relations between Women and Their Partners: An East-West-German Comparison after Reunification," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 544, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    8. Stefan Bach & Giacomo Corneo & Viktor Steiner, 2007. "From Bottom to Top: The Entire Distribution of Market Income in Germany, 1992-2001," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 51, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    9. Marco Caliendo & Jens Hogenacker, 2012. "The German labor market after the Great Recession: successful reforms and future challenges," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 1(1), pages 1-24, December.
    10. Robert Orlowski & Regina T. Riphahn, 2009. "Im Osten nichts Neues – Lohnstrukturen knapp 20 Jahre nach dem Mauerfall," ifo Dresden berichtet, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 16(03), pages 24-27, June.
    11. Bonin, Holger & Euwals, Rob, 2001. "Participation Behavior of East German Women after German Unification," IZA Discussion Papers 413, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    12. Petrik Runst, 2011. "Post-Socialist Culture and Entrepreneurship," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 373, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    13. Smolny Werner, 2009. "Wage Adjustment, Competitiveness and Unemployment – East Germany after Unification," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 229(2-3), pages 130-145, April.
    14. Smolny, Werner, 2010. "Dynamic adjustment and long-run equilibria: Panel data estimates for the East German states," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 1223-1229, September.
    15. Margit Schratzenstaller, 2012. "Gender-Budgeting im Steuersystem," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 45759, Juni.
    16. Caliendo, Marco, 2009. "Income Support Systems, Labor Market Policies and Labor Supply: The German Experience," IZA Discussion Papers 4665, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Brück, Tilman & Peters, Heiko, 2009. "20 years of German unification: Evidence on income convergence and heterogeneity," Working Papers 03/2009, German Council of Economic Experts / Sachverständigenrat zur Begutachtung der gesamtwirtschaftlichen Entwicklung.
    18. Peter Haan, "undated". "Conditional logit versus random coefficient models: An analysis using GLLAMM," German Stata Users' Group Meetings 2004 7, Stata Users Group.
    19. Elke Holst, 2006. "Women in Managerial Positions in Europe: Focus on Germany," management revue - Socio-Economic Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 17(2), pages 122-142.
    20. Ira N. Gang & Robert C. Stuart & Myeong-Su Yun, 2006. "Wage Growth and Inequality Change During Rapid Economic Transition," Departmental Working Papers 200631, Rutgers University, Department of Economics.
    21. Peter Haan, 2004. "Discrete Choice Labor Supply: Conditional Logit vs. Random Coefficient Models," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 394, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Dual-earner couples; economics of the family; household economics; East and West Germany; JEL Codes: D1; J16;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D1 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

    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:taf:femeco:v:12:y:2006:i:4:p:643-665. 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: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/RFEC20 .

    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.