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Author: Peterson, Richard R.
Resulting in 4 citations.
1. Peterson, Richard R.
Effect of Divorce on Wages of Working Women
Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 6 (1987): 61-79
Cohort(s): Mature Women
Publisher: JAI Press, Inc.
Keyword(s): Divorce; Dual Economic Theory; Wages, Women; Women

This paper provides an analysis of the long-term effects of divorce on women's wages based on the NLS of Mature Women, 1967-1977 (number of cases = 3,964). It is found that, in the long run, working divorced women build up a wage advantage over working married women. Structural and individualist models are considered to account for this wage advantage. A labor market segmentation model indicates that divorced (and other single) women are more likely than married women to be working in advantaged segments of the labor market, particularly in large firms, suggesting that such firms prefer to have single or divorced women. Results from the individualist models (human capital and family role) indicate that part of the wage advantage of divorced women can also be attributed to their greater education and work experience. [Sociological Abstracts, Inc.]
Bibliography Citation
Peterson, Richard R. "Effect of Divorce on Wages of Working Women." Research in Social Stratification and Mobility 6 (1987): 61-79.
2. Peterson, Richard R.
Firm Size, Occupational Segregation, and the Effects of Family Status on Women's Wages
Social Forces 68,2 (December 1989): 397-414.
Also: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2579253
Cohort(s): Mature Women
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
Keyword(s): Discrimination, Employer; Discrimination, Sex; Family Influences; Firm Size; Firms; Marital Status; Occupational Segregation; Wages, Women

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

This paper examines the impact of family and parental status on women's wages and tests the hypotheses that employers may prefer single and childless women over married women with children and that such preferences should be reflected more strongly within male-dominated occupations within large firms. Using data from the NLS of Mature Women, the author concluded that the wage advantage of single and childless women is stronger within large firms where employers are more able to offer promotions and wage increases and in male-dominated occupations where employers are more likely to value stable workers who will remain with the firm.
Bibliography Citation
Peterson, Richard R. "Firm Size, Occupational Segregation, and the Effects of Family Status on Women's Wages." Social Forces 68,2 (December 1989): 397-414.
3. Peterson, Richard R.
Socioeconomic Consequences of Divorce for Women
Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University, 1984
Cohort(s): Mature Women
Publisher: UMI - University Microfilms, Bell and Howell Information and Learning
Keyword(s): Divorce; Dual Economic Theory; Labor Force Participation; Life Course; Marital Status; Well-Being

The dual career hypothesis suggests that women are at a disadvantage in the labor market because of their involvement in family roles, implying that women should fare better after divorce. However, the increase in the number of women (including divorced women) supporting themselves and their children is often cited as a cause of the feminization of poverty. In this study, the life-course perspective is developed to consider the effects of divorce on women's position in the labor market and on their economic well-being. The analyses presented here use data from the NLS of Mature Women. Divorced women who work improve their position in the labor market, especially after a long period (consistent with the dual career hypothesis), but all divorced women, including those who work, experience a drop in economic well-being. Improvement in the labor market position of divorced women depends both on increased work experience after divorce, and also on higher demand for the labor of divorced women over married women. Economic well-being after divorce depends to a large extent on prior work history and fertility, but also depends on education and on work adjustments after divorce. The life-course perspective is developed to consider the effects of marital and work history in determining socioeconomic outcomes. The marital history concept is used to demonstrate that divorce is associated with higher wages and earnings, a finding consistent with the dual career hypothesis but previously subject to debate because of emphasis on cross-sectional analysis. The most comprehensive explanation to date is provided to account for the effects of marital status on labor market position, including, for the first time, the finding that there are differences in demand for female labor by marital status. Finally, a simple model is developed to combine the human capital and labor market segmentation approaches; further theoretical development to integrate these two approaches is suggested.
Bibliography Citation
Peterson, Richard R. Socioeconomic Consequences of Divorce for Women. Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University, 1984.
4. Peterson, Richard R.
Women, Work, and Divorce
Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, SUNY Series in the Sociology of Work, 1989
Cohort(s): Mature Women
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Keyword(s): Aid for Families with Dependent Children (AFDC); Child Care; Divorce; Employment; Human Capital Theory; Labor Force Participation; Labor Supply; Marital Status; Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID); Work History

To understand the economic impact that divorce has on women, Peterson argues, one needs to look beyond the period immediately after the divorce. Using a sample of over 5,083 women aged 30-44 from the National Longitudinal Survey data from 1967 to 1977, he examines the economic survival of divorced women and their individual employment patterns, history, and family conditions. (J Marriage Fam) Index.
Bibliography Citation
Peterson, Richard R. Women, Work, and Divorce. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, SUNY Series in the Sociology of Work, 1989.