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Knowledge Obsolescence and Women’s Occupational Sorting: New Evidence from Citation Data

Author

Listed:
  • McFarland Amanda

    (Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA)

  • Pearlman Sarah

    (Economics, Vassar College, 124 Raymond Ave. Box 497, Poughkeepsie, NY, USA)

Abstract

Occupational sorting now is one of the main drivers of the gender wage gap. Differential rates of human capital depreciation, or knowledge obsolescence, have been put forward as one potential explanation. This paper provides new evidence on this relationship using a dataset on academic citations constructed by the authors. The dataset covers numerous fields and decades, making it a more recent and comprehensive measure of human capital depreciation. Using data on occupations from the ACS we find that higher rates of knowledge obsolescence are associated with reductions in women’s presence in a field. We also find that knowledge obsolescence reduces female presence in college majors at the undergraduate level.

Suggested Citation

  • McFarland Amanda & Pearlman Sarah, 2020. "Knowledge Obsolescence and Women’s Occupational Sorting: New Evidence from Citation Data," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 20(1), pages 1-14, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejeap:v:20:y:2020:i:1:p:14:n:5
    DOI: 10.1515/bejeap-2018-0302
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • 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

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