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The Impact of Female Life-cycle Time-allocation Decisions on Income Distribution Among Families

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Human Resources, Employment and Development

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Abstract

Female time allocation patterns have dramatically changed in the past decades, as more and more women have chosen to participate in the labour force. Perhaps this has been one of the most significant phenomena the American economy has experienced during this period. Although many studies have been directed toward understanding the determinants of female allocation of time, much remains unknown about its effects. This paper focuses on one important effect: the impact of married women’s time-allocation decisions over the life cycle on the inequality of the income distribution across households.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Health, Education and Welfare Department, Public Health Service, under Grant#HD 12037-02. The opinions expressed herein are those of the authors and should not be construed as representing the opinions or policy of any agency of the United States Government. We are also indebted to Rachel Willis for skilful research assistance on this project.

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Burton Weisbrod Helen Hughes

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© 1983 International Economic Association

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Lehrer, E., Nerlove, M. (1983). The Impact of Female Life-cycle Time-allocation Decisions on Income Distribution Among Families. In: Weisbrod, B., Hughes, H. (eds) Human Resources, Employment and Development. International Economic Association Series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-22741-9_20

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