IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/wpaper/hal-01070284.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Total work and gender: facts and possible explanations

Author

Listed:
  • Michael C Burda

    (Institut für Wirtschaftstheorie - Humboldt University Of Berlin)

  • Daniel S Hamermesh

    (CWGS - Center for Women's and Gender Studies - University of Texas at Austin [Austin])

  • Philippe Weil

    (OFCE - Observatoire français des conjonctures économiques (Sciences Po) - Sciences Po - Sciences Po)

Abstract

Time-diary data from 27 countries show a negative relationship between GDP per capita and gender differences in total work--for pay and at home. In rich non-Catholic countries men and women average about the same amount of total work. Survey results show scholars and the general public believe that women work more. Widespread average equality does not arise from gender differences in the price of time, intra-family bargaining or spousal complementarity. Several theories, including ones based on social norms, might explain these findings and are consistent with evidence from the World Values Surveys and microeconomic data from Australia and Germany.

Suggested Citation

  • Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2012. "Total work and gender: facts and possible explanations," Working Papers hal-01070284, HAL.
  • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-01070284
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal-sciencespo.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01070284
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://hal-sciencespo.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01070284/document
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Assar Lindbeck & Sten Nyberg & Jörgen W. Weibull, 1999. "Social Norms and Economic Incentives in the Welfare State," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 114(1), pages 1-35.
    2. Bertocchi, Graziella, 2011. "The enfranchisement of women and the welfare state," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(4), pages 535-553, May.
    3. George J. Borjas, 2021. "Ethnic Capital And Intergenerational Mobility," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foundational Essays in Immigration Economics, chapter 6, pages 107-134, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," Working Papers hal-00972818, HAL.
    5. Charlene Kalenkoski & David Ribar & Leslie Stratton, 2009. "The influence of wages on parents’ allocations of time to child care and market work in the United Kingdom," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 22(2), pages 399-419, April.
    6. Gershuny, Jonathan, 2000. "Changing Times: Work and Leisure in Postindustrial Society," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198287872.
    7. Jeremy Greenwood & Ananth Seshadri & Mehmet Yorukoglu, 2005. "Engines of Liberation," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 72(1), pages 109-133.
    8. Matthias Doepke & Michèle Tertilt, 2009. "Women's Liberation: What's in It for Men?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 124(4), pages 1541-1591.
    9. L. Rachel Ngai & Christopher A. Pissarides, 2008. "Trends in Hours and Economic Growth," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 11(2), pages 239-256, April.
    10. Henrich, Joseph & Boyd, Robert & Bowles, Samuel & Camerer, Colin & Fehr, Ernst & Gintis, Herbert (ed.), 2004. "Foundations of Human Sociality: Economic Experiments and Ethnographic Evidence from Fifteen Small-Scale Societies," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199262052.
    11. George A. Akerlof, 1980. "A Theory of Social Custom, of which Unemployment may be One Consequence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 94(4), pages 749-775.
    12. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/8651 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Schultz, T. Paul, 1995. "Human Capital and Economic Development," 1994 Conference, August 22-29, 1994, Harare, Zimbabwe 183410, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    14. Kooreman, P., 2007. "Time, money, peers, and parents : Some data and theories on teenage behavior," Other publications TiSEM 05026f0a-e418-4eb8-a483-7, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    15. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8650 is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Biddle, Jeff E & Hamermesh, Daniel S, 1990. "Sleep and the Allocation of Time," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 98(5), pages 922-943, October.
    17. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-00972817, HAL.
    18. Assar Lindbeck, 1996. "Incentives in the Welfare-State," CESifo Working Paper Series 111, CESifo.
    19. Shelly Lundberg & Robert A. Pollak, 1996. "Bargaining and Distribution in Marriage," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 10(4), pages 139-158, Fall.
    20. Daniel S. Hamermesh, 2002. "Timing, togetherness and time windfalls," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 15(4), pages 601-623.
    21. Cigno, Alessandro, 2009. "What's the Use of Marriage?," IZA Discussion Papers 4635, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    22. John Knowles, 2005. "Why are Married Men Working So Much?," PIER Working Paper Archive 05-031, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania.
    23. Solomon W. Polachek & Jun Xiang, 2009. "The Gender Pay Gap across Countries: A Human Capital Approach," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 227, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    24. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-00972817, HAL.
    25. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/8650 is not listed on IDEAS
    26. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8651 is not listed on IDEAS
    27. Peter Kooreman, 2007. "Time, money, peers, and parents; some data and theories on teenage behavior," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 20(1), pages 9-33, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/eu4vqp9ompqllr09j0h08322p is not listed on IDEAS
    2. Michael Burda & Daniel Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2006. "Different but Equal: Total Work, Gender and Social Norms in the EU and US Time Use," Sciences Po publications info:hdl:2441/8708, Sciences Po.
    3. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8708 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8642 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/8642 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/8642 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2008. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms in EU and US Time Use," Post-Print hal-00972821, HAL.
    8. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/eu4vqp9ompqllr09j0h08322p is not listed on IDEAS
    9. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/eu4vqp9ompqllr09j0h08322p is not listed on IDEAS
    10. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8651 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-00972817, HAL.
    12. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/8650 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," Working Papers hal-00972818, HAL.
    14. Michael C Burda & Daniel S Hamermesh & Philippe Weil, 2007. "Total Work, Gender and Social Norms," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-00972817, HAL.
    15. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/8651 is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Domenico Tabasso, 2011. "With or Without You: Hazard of Divorce and Intra-household Allocation of Time," Melbourne Institute Working Paper Series wp2011n07, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, The University of Melbourne.
    17. Kuroda, Sachiko, 2010. "Do Japanese Work Shorter Hours than before? Measuring trends in market work and leisure using 1976-2006 Japanese time-use survey," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 481-502, December.
    18. John A. Knowles, 2013. "Why are Married Men Working So Much? An Aggregate Analysis of Intra-Household Bargaining and Labour Supply," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 80(3), pages 1055-1085.
    19. Raquel Fernandez, 2009. "Culture as Learning: The Evolution of Female Labor Force Participation over a Century," 2009 Meeting Papers 78, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    20. Aronsson, Thomas & Granlund, David, 2015. "Gender norms, work hours, and corrective taxation," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 33-39.
    21. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/8651 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/8650 is not listed on IDEAS
    23. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/8650 is not listed on IDEAS
    24. Jara-Díaz, Sergio & Rosales-Salas, Jorge, 2017. "Beyond transport time: A review of time use modeling," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 209-230.
    25. Sayyid Salman Rizavi & Catherine Sofer, 2010. "Household Division of Labor : Is There Any Escape From Traditional Gender Roles ?," Post-Print halshs-00461494, HAL.
    26. Fahr, René, 2006. "The Wage Effects of Social Norms: Evidence of Deviations from Peers’ Body-Mass in Europe," IZA Discussion Papers 2323, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    27. Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, Jose Alberto, 2015. "Health status and the allocation of time: Cross-country evidence from Europe," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 188-203.
    28. Matthias Doepke & Michèle Tertilt, 2009. "Women's Liberation: What's in It for Men?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 124(4), pages 1541-1591.
    29. Jonathan Gershuny, 2009. "Veblen in Reverse: Evidence from the Multinational Time-Use Archive," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 93(1), pages 37-45, August.
    30. Asadullah, Niaz & Wahhaj, Zaki, 2016. "Missing from the Market: Purdah Norm and Women's Paid Work Participation in Bangladesh," IZA Discussion Papers 10463, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    31. Nabanita Datta Gupta & Leslie Stratton, 2010. "Examining the impact of alternative power measures on individual time use in American and Danish couple households," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 325-343, September.
    32. Ariane Pailhé & Anne Solaz & Maria Stanfors, 2021. "The Great Convergence: Gender and Unpaid Work in Europe and the United States," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 47(1), pages 181-217, March.
    33. Campaña, Juan Carlos & Gimenez-Nadal, J. Ignacio & Molina, José Alberto, 2015. "Gender differences in the distribution of total work-time of Latin- American families: the importance of social norms," MPRA Paper 62759, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    time use ∙ gender differences ∙ household production;

    JEL classification:

    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation

    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:hal:wpaper:hal-01070284. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: . General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    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: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

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

    IDEAS is a RePEc service hosted by the Research Division of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis . RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.