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Title: Do Non-cognitive Skills Help Explain the Occupational Segregation of Young People?

Citation Type: Working Paper

Publication Year: 2010

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Abstract: This paper investigates the role of non-cognitive skills in the occupational segregation ofyoung workers entering the U.S. labor market. We find entry into male-dominated fields ofstudy and male-dominated occupations are both related to the extent to which individualsbelieve they are intelligent and have male traits while entry into male-dominatedoccupations is also related to the willingness to work hard, impulsivity, and the tendency toavoid problems. The nature of these relationships differs for men and women, however. Noncognitiveskills (intelligence and impulsivity) also influence movement into higher-paidoccupations, but in ways that are similar for men and women. On balance, non-cognitiveskills provide an important, though incomplete, explanation for segregation in the fields thatyoung men and women study as well as in the occupations in which they are employed.

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Authors: Cobb-Clark, Deborah; Antecol, Heather

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Publication Number: 2010-02

Institution: Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research

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Publisher Location: Claremont, CA

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Labor Force and Occupational Structure

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