Document de travail

The Legacy of the Missing Men: The Long-Run Impact of World War I on Female Labor Force Participation

Victor Gay

Résumé

This paper explores the pathways that underlie the diffusion of women's participation in the labor force across generations. I exploit a severe exogenous shock to the sex ratio, World War I in France, which generated a large inflow of women in the labor force after the war. I show that this shock to female labor transmitted to subsequent generations until today. Three mechanisms of intergenerational transmission account for this result: parental transmission, transmission through marriage, and transmission through local social interactions. Beyond behaviors, the war also permanently altered beliefs toward the role of women in the labor force.

Mots-clés

Female labor force participation; World War I; Sex ratio; Intergenerational transmission; Gender norms;

Codes JEL

  • J16: Economics of Gender • Non-labor Discrimination
  • J22: Time Allocation and Labor Supply
  • N34: Europe: 1913-
  • Z13: Economic Sociology • Economic Anthropology • Social and Economic Stratification

Remplacé par

Victor Gay, « The Intergenerational Transmission of World War I on Female Labour », The Economic Journal, vol. 133, n° 654, août 2023, p. 2303–2333.

Référence

Victor Gay, « The Legacy of the Missing Men: The Long-Run Impact of World War I on Female Labor Force Participation », TSE Working Paper, n° 21-1173, janvier 2021.

Voir aussi

Publié dans

TSE Working Paper, n° 21-1173, janvier 2021