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Publications, working papers, and other research using data resources from IPUMS.

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Title: Military Wives: Trends in Employment and Education, 1940-1990

Citation Type: Conference Paper

Publication Year: 2003

Abstract: The late 20th century saw a dramatic rise in the labor force participation & educational attainment of women in the US. Much of what we know, however, is based on studies that excluded members of the military &, specifically, male service members' wives. This research examines the dual patterns of labor force participation & educational attainment of military wives over a 50-year period, 1940-1990. The dataset utilized in this analysis is the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS). IPUMS consists of data from US federal censuses refined & recoded for consistency across time. We describe trends in wives' labor force participation, including rates of employment, the extent of employment (full- vs part-time), & type of occupation. Wives' educational attainment (highest grade completed) & continued education (for those who reported being in school in the past year) are measured as well. For each measure, we compare wives of military men to wives of civilian men, as well as conduct analyses separately for women of different race/ethnic backgrounds. Regional variations, mobility, & presence of children are also considered as possible explanations for military/nonmilitary differentials in wives' labor force participation & educational attainment.

User Submitted?: No

Authors: Grant, Erika L.; Kennedy-Puthoff, Alexa K.

Conference Name: Southern Sociological Society

Publisher Location: New Orleans, LA

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Education, Labor Force and Occupational Structure

Countries:

IPUMS NHGIS NAPP IHIS ATUS Terrapop