Gender, Marriage, and Asset Accumulation in the United States

Lucie Schmidt and Purvi Sevak

No 2006-06, Department of Economics Working Papers from Department of Economics, Williams College

Abstract: Wealth accumulation has important implications for the relative well-being of households. This article describes how household wealth in the United States varies by gender and family type. Evidence is found of large differences in observed wealth between single-female-headed households and married couples. Although some of this gap reflects differences in observable characteristics correlated with gender and wealth -- such as position in the life cycle, education, and family earnings -- controlling for these characteristics reduces but does not eliminate the estimated wealth gap. The wealth holdings of single females in the US, controlling for these same characteristics, are also significantly lower than the wealth holdings of single males. In contrast, observed wealth gaps between genders in a sub-sample of young households disappear when controlling for observable characteristics, suggesting either that in the US these gaps are disappearing for younger households or that these gaps do not emerge until later in life.

Keywords: Wealth; gender; family structure (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D3 J12 J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 28 pages
Date: 2006-04
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Published in Feminist Economics, Vol. 12 Nos. 1-2, January/April 2006, pp. 139-166

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Related works:
Journal Article: GENDER, MARRIAGE, AND ASSET ACCUMULATION IN THE UNITED STATES (2006)
Working Paper: Gender, Marriage, and Asset Accumulation in the United States (2005)
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