Full Citation

Title: Gender Roles and Medical Progress

Citation Type: Working Paper

Publication Year: 2009

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Abstract: The entry of married women into the labor force is one of the most notable economic phenomena of the twentieth century. We argue that medical progress played a critical role in this process. Improved maternal health alleviated the adverse effects of pregnancy and childbirth on women's ability to work, while the introduction of infant formula reduced mothers' comparative advantage in infant feeding. We construct economic measures of these two dimensions of medical progress and develop a quantitative model that aims to capture their impact. Our results suggests that these advances, by enabling women to reconcile work and motherhood, were essential for the rise in married women's participation and the evolution of their economic role.

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Authors: Olivetti, Claudia; Albanesi, Stefania

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Publication Number: 14873

Institution: National Bureau of Economic Research

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Publisher Location: Cambridge, Massachussets

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Fertility and Mortality, Gender, Labor Force and Occupational Structure, Other

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