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Does Identity Affect Labor Supply?

Author

Listed:
  • Suanna Oh

    (PSE - Paris School of Economics - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École nationale des ponts et chaussées - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement, PJSE - Paris Jourdan Sciences Economiques - UP1 - Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS-PSL - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École nationale des ponts et chaussées - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement)

Abstract

How does identity influence economic behavior in the labor market? I investigate this question in rural India, focusing on the effect of caste identity on job-specific labor supply. In a field experiment, laborers choose whether to take up various job offers, which differ in associations with specific castes. Workers are less willing to accept offers that are linked to castes other than their own, especially when those castes rank lower in the social hierarchy. Workers forgo large payments to avoid job offers that conflict with their caste identity, even when these decisions are made in private.

Suggested Citation

  • Suanna Oh, 2023. "Does Identity Affect Labor Supply?," PSE-Ecole d'économie de Paris (Postprint) halshs-04192731, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:pseptp:halshs-04192731
    DOI: 10.1257/aer.20211826
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    Cited by:

    1. Florian H. Schneider & Fanny Brun & Roberto A. Weber, 2024. "Sorting and wage premiums in immoral work," CEBI working paper series 24-12, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. The Center for Economic Behavior and Inequality (CEBI).
    2. Paula Onuchic, 2022. "Recent Contributions to Theories of Discrimination," Papers 2205.05994, arXiv.org, revised Dec 2025.
    3. Goette, Lorenz & Tripodi, Egon, 2024. "The limits of social recognition: Experimental evidence from blood donors," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    4. de Janvry, Alain & Rao, Manaswini & Sadoulet, Elisabeth, 2025. "Seeding the seeds: Role of social structure in agricultural technology diffusion," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 236(C).
    5. Zhu, Sha & Tian, Chengzhi & Hu, Yuanrui, 2025. "Chinese migrant workers’ integration into cities and land transfer amid urban–rural population mobility," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    6. Chen, Yuyu & Hensel, Lukas & Yao, Xinjue, 2025. "From Followers to Leaders: The Career Impact of High-Quality Managers," IZA Discussion Papers 17848, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Asad, Sher Afghan & Banerjee, Ritwik & Bhattacharya, Joydeep, 2023. "Do workers discriminate against their out-group employers? Evidence from an online platform economy," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 216(C), pages 221-242.
    8. Cassan, Guilhem & Keniston, Daniel & Kleineberg, Tatjana, 2021. "A Division of Laborers: Identity and Efficiency in India," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 540, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    9. Vojtěch Bartoš & Ian Levely & Vojtech Bartos, 2023. "Measuring Social Preferences in Developing Economies," CESifo Working Paper Series 10744, CESifo.
    10. Jiang, Weijie & Yu, Hui & Chen, Qi, 2024. "Surname distance and interregional investments," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    11. Banerjee, Biswajit & Herrala, Risto, 2024. "Testing the impact of liquidation speed on leverage using Indian data," BOFIT Discussion Papers 6/2024, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
    12. Baysan, Ceren & Dar, Manzoor H. & Emerick, Kyle & Li, Zhimin & Sadoulet, Elisabeth, 2024. "The agricultural wage gap within rural villages," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    13. Chadi, Adrian & Hetschko, Clemens, 2025. "Income or leisure? On the hidden benefits of (un)employment," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    14. Arnaud Natal & Christophe Jalil Nordman, 2025. "She Works Hard for the Money: Debt Burden and Labour Supply in India," Working Papers DT/2025/01, DIAL (Développement, Institutions et Mondialisation).
    15. Ingar Haaland & Christopher Roth & Stefanie Stantcheva & Johannes Wohlfart, 2024. "Measuring What Is Top of Mind," CEBI working paper series 24-10, University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics. The Center for Economic Behavior and Inequality (CEBI).
    16. Doerrenberg, Philipp & Duncan, Denvil & Li, Danyang, 2024. "The (in)visible hand: Do workers discriminate against employers?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 231(C).
    17. Cullen, Claire & Joshi, Sarthak & Vecci, Joseph & Talbot-Jones, Julia, 2024. "Female Empowerment and Male Backlash: Experimental Evidence from India," IZA Discussion Papers 17450, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Lorenz Götte & Egon Tripodi, 2022. "Social Recognition: Experimental Evidence from Blood Donors," CESifo Working Paper Series 9719, CESifo.
    19. Enzo Brox & Riccardo Di Francesco, 2024. "The Cost of Coming Out," CEIS Research Paper 572, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 16 Apr 2024.
    20. Lane, Tom, 2024. "The strategic use of social identity," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 224(C), pages 355-368.
    21. Qinyou Hu, 2024. "Social status and marriage markets: Evaluating a Hukou policy in China," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 477-509, June.
    22. Kaivan Munshi & Swapnil Singh, 2024. "Social Status, Economic Development and Female Labor Force (Non) Participation," Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers 2417, Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University.
    23. Maria Rosaria Carillo & Vincenzo Lombardo & Tiziana Venittelli, 2023. "Social identity and labor market outcomes of immigrants," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 36(1), pages 69-113, January.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General

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