IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jfinan/v74y2019i6p2915-2956.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Women's Liberation as a Financial Innovation

Author

Listed:
  • MOSHE HAZAN
  • DAVID WEISS
  • HOSNY ZOABI

Abstract

In one of the greatest extensions of property rights in human history, common law countries began giving rights to married women in the 1850s. Before this “women's liberation,” the doctrine of coverture strongly incentivized parents of daughters to hold real estate, rather than financial assets such as money, stocks, or bonds. We exploit the staggered nature of coverture's demise across U.S. states to show that women's rights led to shifts in household portfolios, a positive shock to the supply of credit, and a reallocation of labor toward nonagriculture and capital‐intensive industries. Investor protection thus deepened financial markets, aiding industrialization.

Suggested Citation

  • Moshe Hazan & David Weiss & Hosny Zoabi, 2019. "Women's Liberation as a Financial Innovation," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 74(6), pages 2915-2956, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jfinan:v:74:y:2019:i:6:p:2915-2956
    DOI: 10.1111/jofi.12829
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/jofi.12829
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/jofi.12829?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Thiemo Fetzer, 2014. "Can Workfare Programs Moderate Violence? Evidence from India," STICERD - Economic Organisation and Public Policy Discussion Papers Series 53, Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, LSE.
    2. Calomiris,Charles W., 2000. "U.S. Bank Deregulation in Historical Perspective," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521583626, November.
    3. Efraim Benmelech & Tobias J. Moskowitz, 2010. "The Political Economy of Financial Regulation: Evidence from U.S. State Usury Laws in the 19th Century," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 65(3), pages 1029-1073, June.
    4. Thiemo Fetzer, 2014. "Can Workfare Programs Moderate Violence? Evidence from India," STICERD - Economic Organisation and Public Policy Discussion Papers Series 053, Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, LSE.
    5. Browning,Martin & Chiappori,Pierre-André & Weiss,Yoram, 2014. "Economics of the Family," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521795395.
    6. Oded Galor & Omer Moav & Dietrich Vollrath, 2009. "Inequality in Landownership, the Emergence of Human-Capital Promoting Institutions, and the Great Divergence," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 76(1), pages 143-179.
    7. Chad Turner & Robert Tamura & Sean Mulholland, 2013. "How important are human capital, physical capital and total factor productivity for determining state economic growth in the United States, 1840–2000?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 18(4), pages 319-371, December.
    8. Peter Koudijs & Laura Salisbury, 2016. "Bankruptcy and Investment: Evidence from Changes in Marital Property Laws in the U.S. South, 1840-1850," NBER Working Papers 21952, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Greenwood, Jeremy & Hercowitz, Zvi & Krusell, Per, 1997. "Long-Run Implications of Investment-Specific Technological Change," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(3), pages 342-362, June.
    10. Ross Levine, 1997. "Financial Development and Economic Growth: Views and Agenda," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 35(2), pages 688-726, June.
    11. John R. Lott & Jr. & Lawrence W. Kenny, 1999. "Did Women's Suffrage Change the Size and Scope of Government?," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 107(6), pages 1163-1198, December.
    12. Acemoglu, Daron & Zilibotti, Fabrizio, 1997. "Was Prometheus Unbound by Chance? Risk, Diversification, and Growth," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 105(4), pages 709-751, August.
    13. Toke S. Aidt & Raphaël Franck, 2015. "Democratization Under the Threat of Revolution: Evidence From the Great Reform Act of 1832," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 83, pages 505-547, March.
    14. Combs, Mary Beth, 2005. "A Measure of Legal Independence†: The 1870 Married Women's Property Act and the Portfolio Allocations of British Wives," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 65(4), pages 1028-1057, December.
    15. Khan, B. Zorina, 1996. "Married Women's Property Laws and Female Commercial Activity: Evidence from United States Patent Records, 1790–1895," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 56(2), pages 356-388, June.
    16. Michael R. Haines, 1989. "A State and Local Consumer Price Index for the United States in 1890," NBER Historical Working Papers 0002, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Landon-Lane, John & Rockoff, Hugh, 2007. "The origin and diffusion of shocks to regional interest rates in the United States, 1880-2002," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 44(3), pages 487-500, July.
    18. Justin Wolfers, 2006. "Did Unilateral Divorce Laws Raise Divorce Rates? A Reconciliation and New Results," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1802-1820, December.
    19. Coelho, Philip R. P. & Shepherd, James F., 1974. "Differences in Regional Prices: The United States, 1851–1880," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 34(3), pages 551-591, September.
    20. Turner, Chad & Tamura, Robert & Schoellman, Todd & Mulholland, Sean, 2011. "Estimating Physical Capital and Land for States and Sectors of the United States, 1850-2000," MPRA Paper 32847, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    21. Conley, T. G., 1999. "GMM estimation with cross sectional dependence," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 92(1), pages 1-45, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Jo, Wooyong & Nam, Hyoryung & Choi, Jeonghye, 2022. "Opening the OTC drug market: The effect of deregulation on retail pharmacy’s performance," International Journal of Research in Marketing, Elsevier, vol. 39(3), pages 847-866.
    2. Davis, Lewis S. & Williamson, Claudia R., 2022. "Individualism and women's economic rights," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 198(C), pages 579-597.
    3. Auriol, Emmanuelle & Camilotti, Giula & Platteau, Jean-Philippe, 2017. "Eradicating Women-Hurting Customs: What Role for Social Engineering?," CEPR Discussion Papers 12107, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Ali, Daniel Ayalew & Deininger, Klaus, 2024. "Using registry data to assess gender-differentiated land and credit market effects of urban land policy reform: Evidence from Lesotho," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 175(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Tiago Cavalcanti & Daniel Mata & Frederik Toscani, 2019. "Winning the oil lottery: the impact of natural resource extraction on growth," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 24(1), pages 79-115, March.
    2. Da Mata, Daniel & Resende, Guilherme, 2020. "Changing the climate for banking: The economic effects of credit in a climate-vulnerable area," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 146(C).
    3. Thomas McGregor & Samuel Wills, 2016. "Surfing A Wave Of Economic Growth," OxCarre Working Papers 170, Oxford Centre for the Analysis of Resource Rich Economies, University of Oxford.
    4. Martin Fiszbein, 2017. "Agricultural Diversity, Structural Change and Long-run Development: Evidence from the U.S," NBER Working Papers 23183, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Matthias Doepke & Michèle Tertilt, 2009. "Women's Liberation: What's in It for Men?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 124(4), pages 1541-1591.
    6. Matthias Doepke & Michèle Tertilt & Alessandra Voena, 2012. "The Economics and Politics of Women's Rights," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 4(1), pages 339-372, July.
    7. Raghuram G. Rajan & Rodney Ramcharan, 2011. "Land and Credit: A Study of the Political Economy of Banking in the United States in the Early 20th Century," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 66(6), pages 1895-1931, December.
    8. Aragón, Fernando M. & Miranda, Juan Jose & Oliva, Paulina, 2017. "Particulate matter and labor supply: The role of caregiving and non-linearities," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 295-309.
    9. Franklin Allen & Xian Gu & Oskar Kowalewski, 2017. "Financial structure, economic growth and development," Post-Print hal-01917114, HAL.
    10. Briggs, Ryan C., 2018. "Poor targeting: A gridded spatial analysis of the degree to which aid reaches the poor in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 133-148.
    11. Magdalena Blanco & Jose Maria Cabrera & Felipe Carozzi & Alejandro Cid de Orta, 2022. "Mandatory Helmet Use and the Severity of Motorcycle Accidents: No Brainer?," Economía Journal, The Latin American and Caribbean Economic Association - LACEA, vol. 0(Spring 20), pages 187-218, June.
    12. Giommoni, Tommaso, 2021. "Exposure to corruption and political participation: Evidence from Italian municipalities," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    13. Mark Dincecco & Massimiliano Gaetano Onorato, 2016. "Military conflict and the rise of urban Europe," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 259-282, September.
    14. Fernando M. Aragon & Juan Jose Miranda & Paulina Oliva, 2016. "Particulate matter and labor supply: evidence from Peru," Discussion Papers dp16-01, Department of Economics, Simon Fraser University.
    15. Salvucci, Vincenzo & Santos, Ricardo, 2020. "Vulnerability to Natural Shocks: Assessing the Short-Term Impact on Consumption and Poverty of the 2015 Flood in Mozambique," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    16. Michael Berlemann & Daniela Wenzel, 2016. "Long-term Growth Effects of Natural Disasters - Empirical Evidence for Droughts," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 36(1), pages 464-476.
    17. Sungkwol Park & Barry K. Goodwin & Xiaoyong Zheng & Roderick M. Rejesus, 2020. "Contract elements, growing conditions, and anomalous claims behaviour in U.S. crop insurance," The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance - Issues and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan;The Geneva Association, vol. 45(1), pages 157-183, January.
    18. Blanco, Magdalena & Cabrera, José María & Cid, Alejandro & Carozzi, Felipe, 2017. "Effects of Motorcycle Helmet Laws on Fatalities’ Prevention: An Impact Evaluation," MPRA Paper 84652, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Schaff, Felix, 2020. "When ‘the state made war’, what happened to economic inequality? Evidence from preindustrial Germany (c.1400-1800)," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 107046, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E02 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - General - - - Institutions and the Macroeconomy
    • E44 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy
    • G11 - Financial Economics - - General Financial Markets - - - Portfolio Choice; Investment Decisions
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • K11 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Property Law
    • K36 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Family and Personal Law
    • N11 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • N21 - Economic History - - Financial Markets and Institutions - - - U.S.; Canada: Pre-1913
    • O11 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jfinan:v:74:y:2019:i:6:p:2915-2956. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/afaaaea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.