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Title: Socioeconomic Consequences of Divorce for Women
Resulting in 1 citation.
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Peterson, Richard R. |
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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. |
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Bibliography Citation
Peterson, Richard R. Socioeconomic Consequences of Divorce for Women. Ph.D. Dissertation, Columbia University, 1984. |