Women, Family, and Work

Women, Family, and Work is a collection of original essays on a wide variety of topics related to the economics of gender and the family. Written by leading thinkers in the field, the essays apply traditional economic theory to unconventional topics, while also developing neoclassical economic thought to provide a better model of economic interactions.

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• 12 newly-commissioned essays on the economics of labor, gender, and family life.
  
• Juxtaposes various viewpoints, allowing readers to weigh the benefits and drawbacks of each model.
  
• Applies traditional economic theory to unconventional topics, while also revisioning neoclassical economic thought.

List of Contributors vii

Preface xi

Part I Setting the Stage 1

Introduction Setting the Stage: An Introduction and Overview 3
Karine S. Moe

1 A Feminist Critique of the Neoclassical Theory of the Family 9
Marianne A. Ferber

Part II The Economics of Marriage 25

2 Rational Choice and the Price of Marriage 27
Robert Cherry

3 Conceptualizing and Measuring Bargaining Power within the Household 43
Cheryl Doss

Part III The Division of Work in the Household 63

4 Gains from Trade and Specialization: The Division of Work in Married Couple Households 65
Leslie S. Stratton

5 But … Who Mows the Lawn?: The Division of Labor in Same-sex Households 85
Lisa Giddings

Part IV The Economics of Childbearing and Childcaring 103

6 Economic Theories of Fertility 105
Diane Macunovich

7 The Childcare Economics Conundrum: Quality versus Affordability 125
Julie A. Nelson

8 The Childcare Problem for Low-income Working Families 143
Jean Kimmel

Part V The Gender Gap in Earnings 159

9 The Human Capital Explanation for the Gender Gap in Earnings 161
Joyce P. Jacobsen

10 Occupational Segregation Around the World 177
Debra Barbezat

11 Labor Market Discrimination: A Case Study of MBAs 199
Irene Powell

12 Employment Discrimination, Economists, and the Law 217
Joni Hersch

Index 235

'This collection brings together a number of the best feminist economists writing in the US today. Spanning topics from child care to the division of labour in the home, from the gender gap in earnings to the economics of marriage, it goes beyond the standard textbook analysis to provide a deeper understanding of Women, Family, and Work.' Frances Woolley, Carleton University Karine S. Moe is Associate Professor of Economics at Macalester College, with a PhD from the University of Minnesota. She has written widely on the subject of gender economics, and has been published in journals such as Feminist Economics and The Review of Economic Dynamics. Women, Family, and Work is a collection of original essays on topics related to the economics of gender and the family. Written by leading thinkers in the field, the chapters apply traditional economic theory to non-traditional topics, while also stretching and bending neoclassical economic thought to provide a better model of economic interactions.

The chapters cover a diverse range of topics, including the economics of marriage; the division of work in the household; the economics of childbearing and childcare; and the gender gap in wages. The various viewpoints of the essays, including neoclassical and feminist, and heterosexual and homosexual, contribute to the comprehensive nature of the book. This collection explores how economics can be applied to realms outside of the marketplace, and challenges readers to critically examine the connections between the domain of family and care and the domain of labor market work.