Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households

Jeremy Greenwood and Nezih Guner

No 8, Economie d'Avant Garde Research Reports from Economie d'Avant Garde

Abstract: Since World War II there has been: (i) a rise in the fraction of time that married households allocate to market work, (ii) an increase in the rate of divorce, and (iii) a decline in the rate of marriage. What can explain this? It is argued here that labor-saving technological progress in the household sector can explain these facts. This makes it more feasible for singles to maintain their own home, and for married women to work. To address this question, a search model of marriage and divorce, which incorporates household production, is developed. An extension looks back at the prewar era.

Keywords: Marriage; Divorce; Hours Worked; Household Production; Household Size; Technological Progress (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E13 J12 J22 O11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 pages
Date: 2004-06, Revised 2008-04
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (71)

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Related works:
Chapter: Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households (2009)
Working Paper: Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households (2008)
Working Paper: Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households (2007)
Working Paper: Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households (2004)
Working Paper: Marriage and Divorce since World War II: Analyzing the Role of Technological Progress on the Formation of Households (2004)
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