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The Reversal of the Gender Education Gap with Economic Development

Author

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  • Rendall, Michelle
  • Feng, Ying
  • Ren, Jie

Abstract

Using household surveys covering 83 countries of all income levels, we document that the gender education gap in low-income countries is strikingly large and that it narrows and reverses with economic development. To study the driving forces, we propose a three-sector model in which development features skill-biased structural change, gender-biased technological change (a reduced form of changing discrimination), changing marriage markets, and varying levels of home productivity. The model is parameterized to match contrasting labor market outcomes by education and gender groups and it does well in matching the patterns of the gender education gap we document. Counterfactual exercises show that skill-biased structural change explains most of the narrowing gender education gap across the development spectrum, whereas other mechanisms play only a minor role.

Suggested Citation

  • Rendall, Michelle & Feng, Ying & Ren, Jie, 2023. "The Reversal of the Gender Education Gap with Economic Development," CEPR Discussion Papers 17786, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:17786
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Development; Structural change; Skill-biased technical change;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • I25 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Economic Development
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • O41 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - One, Two, and Multisector Growth Models

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