Economic and social consequences of gender attitudes in Eastern Europe – evidence from survey data
Economic and social consequences of gender attitudes in Eastern Europe – evidence from survey data

Summary/Abstract: While in many economic models the ‘representative agent’ continues to be a useful abstraction to discuss numerous important questions, the actual populations the models and discussions relate to consist of diverse individuals. They differ from each other across countless dimensions including that of gender, with the quantitatively most important division being that between men and women. Across time and space there have been differences in peoples’ ideas about what it means to be a ‘man’ and a ‘woman’. These attitudes, both on an individual as well as on a societal level, impact many, perhaps even most, fundamental individual decisions. Everything from educational choices and labour market outcomes to family formation and consumption choices are, to different degrees, affected by ideas about gender roles.1 Akerlof and Kranton (2000) exemplify how this dimension of our gender identity can affect many of our decisions. As they put it: There are two abstract social categories, “man” and “woman.” These categories are associated with different ideal physical attributes and prescribed behaviors. Everyone in the population is assigned a gender category, as either a “man” or a “woman.” Following the behavioral prescriptions for one’s gender affirms one’s self- image, or identity, as a “man” or as a “woman”. (Akerlof & Kranton, 2000, p. 716)

• Details
• Contents