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‘Birds of a Feather Flock Together’: The Impact of Choice of Spouse on Family Labor Income Inequality

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  • Iulie Aslaksen
  • Tom Wennemo
  • Rolf Aaberge

Abstract

. This paper analyzes to what extent the rise in women's labor force participation has led to ‘flocking together’, i.e. whether women with high labor income tend to be married to men with high labor income, or vice versa. Based on the decomposition of the Gini coefficient and a related index for the extent of ‘flocking together’ applied to labor income data for Norway for the period 1973–97, we find a tendency for ‘flocking together’ for all married couples, and married couples with two labor incomes.

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  • Iulie Aslaksen & Tom Wennemo & Rolf Aaberge, 2005. "‘Birds of a Feather Flock Together’: The Impact of Choice of Spouse on Family Labor Income Inequality," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 19(3), pages 491-515, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:labour:v:19:y:2005:i:3:p:491-515
    DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9914.2005.00311.x
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    1. Iulie Aslaksen & Tom Wennemo & Rolf Aaberge, 2005. "‘Birds of a Feather Flock Together’: The Impact of Choice of Spouse on Family Labor Income Inequality," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 19(3), pages 491-515, September.
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    6. Sheldon Danziger, 1980. "Do Working Wives Increase Family Income Inequality?," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 15(3), pages 444-451.
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    9. Pencavel, John, 1998. "Assortative Mating by Schooling and the Work Behavior of Wives and Husbands," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(2), pages 326-329, May.
    10. Aaberge, Rolf, 1997. "Interpretation of changes in rank-dependent measures of inequality," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 55(2), pages 215-219, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Pestel, Nico, 2014. "Beyond Inequality Accounting: Marital Sorting and Couple Labor Supply," IZA Discussion Papers 8482, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Kai A. Konrad & Kjell Erik Lommerud, 2010. "Love and taxes - and matching institutions," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 43(3), pages 919-940, August.
    3. Kimhi, Ayal, 2011. "Can Female Non-Farm Labor Income Reduce Income Inequality? Evidence from Rural Southern Ethiopia," 2011 International Congress, August 30-September 2, 2011, Zurich, Switzerland 114756, European Association of Agricultural Economists.
    4. Nico Pestel, 2017. "Marital Sorting, Inequality and the Role of Female Labour Supply: Evidence from East and West Germany," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 84(333), pages 104-127, January.
    5. Andreas Peichl & Martin Ungerer, 2016. "Accounting for the spouse when measuring inequality of opportunity," Social Choice and Welfare, Springer;The Society for Social Choice and Welfare, vol. 47(3), pages 607-631, October.
    6. Iulie Aslaksen & Tom Wennemo & Rolf Aaberge, 2005. "‘Birds of a Feather Flock Together’: The Impact of Choice of Spouse on Family Labor Income Inequality," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 19(3), pages 491-515, September.
    7. Raymundo M. Campos Vázquez & Andrés Hincapie & Rubén I. Rojas Valdés, 2011. "Family Income Inequality and the Role of Wives Earnings in Mexico: 1988-2010," Serie documentos de trabajo del Centro de Estudios Económicos 2011-07, El Colegio de México, Centro de Estudios Económicos.
    8. Ayal Kimhi, 2009. "Male Income, Female Income, and Household Income Inequality in Israel: A Decomposition Analysis," Journal of Income Distribution, Ad libros publications inc., vol. 18(3-4), pages 34-48, September.
    9. Lasse Eika & Magne Mogstad & Basit Zafar, 2019. "Educational Assortative Mating and Household Income Inequality," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 127(6), pages 2795-2835.
    10. Caroline Dewilde, 2011. "GINI DP 18: The interplay between economic inequality trends and housing regime changes in advanced welfare democracies," GINI Discussion Papers 18, AIAS, Amsterdam Institute for Advanced Labour Studies.
    11. Nicolas Frémeaux & Arnaud Lefranc, 2020. "Assortative Mating and Earnings Inequality in France," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 66(4), pages 757-783, December.
    12. Raaum Oddbjørn & Bratsberg Bernt & Røed Knut & Österbacka Eva & Eriksson Tor & Jäntti Markus & Naylor Robin A, 2008. "Marital Sorting, Household Labor Supply, and Intergenerational Earnings Mobility across Countries," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(2), pages 1-49, January.
    13. Raymundo M. Campos-Vázquez & Andrés Hincapié & Ruben Irvin Rojas-Valdés, 2012. "Family Income Inequality and the Role of Married Females' Earnings in Mexico: 1988-2010," Latin American Journal of Economics-formerly Cuadernos de Economía, Instituto de Economía. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile., vol. 49(1), pages 67-98, May.

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    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution

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