Economics of Women, Men, and Work (5th Edition)

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 464 pages
• Published by: Prentice Hall
• Edition: 5th Edition August 4, 2005
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 0131851543
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-0131851542
• Book Dimensions: 9.1 x 7 x 0.7 inches
• Weighs: 1.4 pounds

Product Description

A current summary and synthesis of research and data on gender issues in the labor market, this book presents readers with a single volume that thoroughly explores gender issues in the workplace and in the family. Chapter topics include women and men: changing roles in a changing economy, the family as an economic unit, the allocation of time between the household and the labor market, differences in occupations and earnings, recent developments in the labor market, changing work roles and the family, and gender differences in other countries. For use by practicing economists and social scientists, and for men and women interested in learning about their place within-and effect upon-the labor market.

Back Cover Copy


Totally updated and revised, the fourth edition reflects recent changes in the labor market and in the family. Like previous editions, this text offers the most current summary and synthesis of research and data on gender issues in these areas in a single volume. Here are just a few of the features you can look forward to in the new edition:

• The text highlights recent developments in the labor market: the declining gender pay gap; the effect of changes in welfare policy on single mothers' employment; growing wage inequality; the declining employment prospects of less educated men; and the rise of nonstandard employment arrangements.
• All discussions concerning policy have been thoroughly revised. Updates include expanded discussion of the glass ceiling, affirmative action, and anti-discrimination legislation; policies that affect paid work and families; the 1996 welfare legislation (TANF) and its impact on welfare case loads and economic well-being; child support enforcement; tax polices; child care; and more.
• Discussion questions have been added at the end of each chapter to stimulate further discussion among students and instructors. Answers to the discussion questions, along with the transparency masters for all figures and tables, can found on the instructor's Web site at www.prenhall.com/blau.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Reader Reviews
This review is from: Economics of Women, Men and Work (Hardcover) This book is an overview of how gender and race play into neo-classical economic theory. The authors discuss both macro- and micro-economic models, and how differences in gender and race can be explained using the models. Topics covered include: gender roles and economic development (in the US), division of labor within the family, allocation of time between the household and the labor market, consequences of women's employment for the family, differences in occupations and earnings, joblessness, and sex differences in other countries. The discussion is confined primarily to the US economy, although the theoretical aspects should be applicable elsewhere, and there is a brief section at the end of the book examining a few economic aspects of gender in developing countries, the U.S.S.R, and Sweden. Although the text generally focuses on gender differences, racial differences are also discussed with almost every topic. For the most part, the book examines only the economics of married heterosexual women, and women who are single or partners in same-sex unions fall outside the scope of the discussion. More in-depth explorations of theoretical issues are provided in appendices which follow several of the chapters. Each chapter includes a brief list of suggested readings. End material consists of an author index and a subject index. The authors strongly advocate for women engaging in the labor market rather than restricting their work to household activities. They argue that this will likely maximize household income both in the short run and the long term, and provide a much better chance of financial viability for a woman and her children in case her marriage dissolves through divorce or widowhood. They also point out national policies, such as limited subsidies for childcare, that tend to make working in the labor market less attractive for American women. They point out that the families of women who take part in the labor market do not suffer adversely, and that the benefits for the family outweigh the costs. Rather than simply reporting the facts about gender differences relating to economics, the authors seek to explain motivations and behaviors through economic theory. The book is filled with charts of supply-and-demand-type "indifference curves", designed to show how a typical person feels about participating in the labor market, and at what point he or she will join or leave the market according to possible financial returns. These charts are used both to explain labor market statistics, and to argue the authors' point that women should participate in the labor market. I found the explanatory approach interesting in its attempts to provide a theoretical basis for observed gender differences. However, I'm not entirely convinced that the assumptions that the theory is based on are correct. For example, the authors assume that couples will strive to maximize their income, but is this the real goal that couples are working towards? What about couples who seek to maximize their satisfaction in their family relationships, or their children's development, or those whose financial goal is only to earn "enough" and not to spend a single superfluous minute in the labor market? And what about those who participate in the labor market solely for the joy of it, and not for the financial returns? The possibility that some individuals might have different goals that would affect their participation in the labor market would probably complicate the models found here so much as to make them unworkable. The models must be made simple in order to work, but since the real world is more complex, it's not clear how relevant the simple models are for the real world. In general, the authors tend to overlook or downplay cultural factors that may have stronger effects on economic behavior than the theoretical economic factors that they discuss. Nevertheless, the book provides an interesting starting point for analyzing gender differences in economic behavior, and it also provides an excellent overview of research on women's labor market participation in the US through the 1980s.