[go: up one dir, main page]
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/izadps/dp5138.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Independent Individual Decision-Makers in Household Models and the New Home Economics

Author

Listed:
  • Grossbard, Shoshana

    (San Diego State University)

Abstract
Much of the recent literature in household economics has been critical of unitary models of household decision-making. Most alternative models currently used are bargaining models and consensual models, including collective models. This paper discusses another alternative: independent individual models of decision-making that don't make any specific assumptions of jointness of decision-making in households. Unitary models are typically associated with Gary Becker even though most of Becker’s own analyses of the family did not use his unitary model. This is especially the case with the specifically independent individual models presented in his theory of marriage. Decision-making models assuming independent individual household members in the Becker tradition are reminiscent of models of labor markets in which firms and workers are independent decision-makers. As basis for econometric estimations, such models may be preferable to models imposing the structure of a game or a household welfare function.

Suggested Citation

  • Grossbard, Shoshana, 2010. "Independent Individual Decision-Makers in Household Models and the New Home Economics," IZA Discussion Papers 5138, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp5138
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://docs.iza.org/dp5138.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Grossbard, Shoshana, 1976. "An economic analysis of polygamy," MPRA Paper 81135, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Apps,Patricia & Rees,Ray, 2009. "Public Economics and the Household," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521716284, September.
    3. André Portela Souza, 2007. "Child Labor, School Attendance, and Intrahousehold Gender Bias in Brazil," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 21(2), pages 301-316, March.
    4. Hans Bloemen & Elena Stancanelli, 2008. "How Do Parents Allocate Time? The Effects of Wages and Income," Working Papers hal-01066183, HAL.
    5. Chau, Tak Wai & Li, Hongbin & Liu, Pak Wai & Zhang, Junsen, 2007. "Testing the collective model of household labor supply: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 389-402.
    6. Keeley, Michael C, 1977. "The Economics of Family Formation," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 15(2), pages 238-250, April.
    7. Grossbard-Shechtman, Shoshana, 2003. "A consumer theory with competitive markets for work in marriage," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 31(6), pages 609-645.
    8. Grossbard, Shoshana, 2010. "How “Chicagoan” Are Gary Becker’S Economic Models Of Marriage?," Journal of the History of Economic Thought, Cambridge University Press, vol. 32(3), pages 377-395, September.
    9. Schwarz Peter M & Troyer Jennifer L & Walker Jennifer Beck, 2007. "Animal House: Economics of Pets and the Household," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 7(1), pages 1-27, July.
    10. Gary S. Becker & H. Gregg Lewis, 1974. "Interaction between Quantity and Quality of Children," NBER Chapters, in: Economics of the Family: Marriage, Children, and Human Capital, pages 81-90, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Paul A. Samuelson, 1956. "Social Indifference Curves," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 70(1), pages 1-22.
    12. Cain, Glen G & Dooley, Martin D, 1976. "Estimation of a Model of Labor Supply, Fertility, and Wages of Married Women," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 84(4), pages 179-199, August.
    13. Becker, Gary S & Landes, Elisabeth M & Michael, Robert T, 1977. "An Economic Analysis of Marital Instability," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 85(6), pages 1141-1187, December.
    14. Jacob Mincer, 1993. "Studies In Labor Supply," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 317.
    15. Marjorie B. McElroy, 1990. "The Empirical Content of Nash-Bargained Household Behavior," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 25(4), pages 559-583.
    16. Richard Anderson & Michael Grossman, 2009. "Health and the household," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 7(3), pages 219-226, September.
    17. Grossbard,Shoshana A. (ed.), 2003. "Marriage and the Economy," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521814546, September.
    18. Elizabeth Katz, 1997. "The Intra-Household Economics of Voice and Exit," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 3(3), pages 25-46.
    19. Grossbard-Shechtman, Shoshana Amyra, 1984. "A Theory of Allocation of Time in Markets for Labour and Marriage," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 94(376), pages 863-882, December.
    20. Jill Tiefenthaler, 1999. "The sectoral labor supply of married couples in Brazil: Testing the unitary model of household behavior," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 12(4), pages 591-606.
    21. Gary S. Becker, 1960. "An Economic Analysis of Fertility," NBER Chapters, in: Demographic and Economic Change in Developed Countries, pages 209-240, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    22. Shoshana Grossbard (ed.), 2006. "Jacob Mincer A Pioneer of Modern Labor Economics," Springer Books, Springer, number 978-0-387-29175-8, December.
    23. Manser, Marilyn & Brown, Murray, 1980. "Marriage and Household Decision-Making: A Bargaining Analysis," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 21(1), pages 31-44, February.
    24. Apps, Patricia F. & Rees, Ray, 1988. "Taxation and the household," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 355-369, April.
    25. Hans G. Bloemen & Elena G. F. Stancanelli, 2008. "How do spouses allocate time : the effects of wages and income," THEMA Working Papers 2008-40, THEMA (THéorie Economique, Modélisation et Applications), Université de Cergy-Pontoise.
    26. Jacob Mincer, 1962. "Labor Force Participation of Married Women: A Study of Labor Supply," NBER Chapters, in: Aspects of Labor Economics, pages 63-105, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    27. Michael Grossman, 1976. "The Correlation between Health and Schooling," NBER Chapters, in: Household Production and Consumption, pages 147-224, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    28. Grossbard,Shoshana A. (ed.), 2003. "Marriage and the Economy," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521891431, September.
    29. repec:bla:scandj:v:97:y:1995:i:4:p:581-601 is not listed on IDEAS
    30. McElroy, Marjorie B & Horney, Mary Jean, 1981. "Nash-Bargained Household Decisions: Toward a Generalization of the Theory of Demand," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 22(2), pages 333-349, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Matthieu Delpierre, 2012. "The impact of liquidity constraints and imperfect commitment on migration decisions of offspring of rural households," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 153-170, March.
    2. Jara-Díaz, Sergio & Rosales-Salas, Jorge, 2017. "Beyond transport time: A review of time use modeling," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 209-230.
    3. Mazzutti, Caio Cícero Toledo Piza da Costa, 2016. "Three essays on the causal impacts of child labour laws in Brazil," Economics PhD Theses 0616, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    4. Daniel Wheatley & Zhongmin Wu, 2014. "Dual careers, time-use and satisfaction levels: evidence from the British Household Panel Survey," Industrial Relations Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(5), pages 443-464, September.
    5. Man Si, 2015. "Intrafamily bargaining and love," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 13(4), pages 771-789, December.
    6. Dan Wheatley and Zhongmin Wu, 2011. "Work, Inequality, and the Dual Career Household," NBS Discussion Papers in Economics 2011/03, Economics, Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University.
    7. Sabrina Bruyneel & Laurens Cherchye & Bram De Rock, 2012. "Collective consumption models with restricted bargaining weights: an empirical assessment based on experimental data," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 10(3), pages 395-421, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Grossbard, Shoshana, 1993. "On the Economics of Marriage - A Theory of Marriage, Labor and Divorce. Out of print. Published originally by Westview Press in 1993 under name Grossbard-Shechtman," MPRA Paper 81059, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Olivier Bargain & Miriam Beblo & Denis Beninger & Richard Blundell & Raquel Carrasco & Maria-Concetta Chiuri & François Laisney & Valérie Lechene & Nicolas Moreau & Michal Myck & Javier Ruiz-Castillo , 2006. "Does the Representation of Household Behavior Matter for Welfare Analysis of Tax-benefit Policies? An Introduction," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 4(2), pages 99-111, June.
    3. François Cochard & Hélène Couprie & Astrid Hopfensitz, 2016. "Do spouses cooperate? An experimental investigation," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 14(1), pages 1-26, March.
    4. Chiappori, Pierre-André & Donni, Olivier, 2009. "Non-unitary Models of Household Behavior: A Survey of the Literature," IZA Discussion Papers 4603, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Hans Bloemen & Silvia Pasqua & Elena Stancanelli, 2010. "An empirical analysis of the time allocation of Italian couples: are they responsive?," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 345-369, September.
    6. Jara-Díaz, Sergio & Rosales-Salas, Jorge, 2017. "Beyond transport time: A review of time use modeling," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 97(C), pages 209-230.
    7. Amuedo-Dorantes, Catalina & Bonke, Jens & Grossbard, Shoshana, 2010. "Income Pooling and Household Division of Labor: Evidence from Danish Couples," IZA Discussion Papers 5418, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    8. Chiappori, Pierre-André & Donni, Olivier, 2006. "Les modèles non unitaires de comportement du ménage : un survol de la littérature," L'Actualité Economique, Société Canadienne de Science Economique, vol. 82(1), pages 9-52, mars-juin.
    9. Sabrina Bruyneel & Laurens Cherchye & Bram De Rock, 2012. "Collective consumption models with restricted bargaining weights: an empirical assessment based on experimental data," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 10(3), pages 395-421, September.
    10. Grossbard-Shechtman, Shoshana, 2003. "A consumer theory with competitive markets for work in marriage," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 31(6), pages 609-645.
    11. Ronald Mincy & Shoshana Grossbard & Chien-Chung Huang, 2005. "An Economic Analysis of Co-Parenting Choices: Single Parent, Visiting Father, Cohabitation, Marriage," Labor and Demography 0505004, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. repec:eee:labchp:v:1:y:1986:i:c:p:205-271 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Grossbard, Shoshana, 2023. "Spouses as Home Health Workers and Cooks: Insights for Applied Research," IZA Discussion Papers 16182, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Grossbard, Shoshana & Gimenez-Nadal, José Ignacio & Molina, José Alberto, 2010. "Racial Discrimination and Household Chores," IZA Discussion Papers 5345, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    15. Grossbard, Shoshana, 2016. "Marriage and Marriage Markets," IZA Discussion Papers 10312, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Patricia Apps & Ray Rees, 2007. "Household Models: An Historical Perspective," CESifo Working Paper Series 2172, CESifo.
    17. Patricia Apps & Ray Rees, 2011. "Relational Contracts, Taxation and the Household," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 57(2), pages 245-258, June.
    18. Malapit, Hazel Jean L., 2012. "Why do spouses hide income?," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 41(5), pages 584-593.
    19. Gillian Hewitson, 2001. "A Survey of Feminist Economics," Working Papers 2001.01, School of Economics, La Trobe University.
    20. J. Gimenez-Nadal & Jose Molina, 2013. "Parents’ education as a determinant of educational childcare time," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 26(2), pages 719-749, April.
    21. Bansak, Cynthia & Grossbard, Shoshana & Wong, Ho-Po Crystal, 2022. "Mothers’ caregiving during COVID: The impact of marital property laws on women’s labor force status," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 47(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Gary Becker; household model; unitary model; marriage; labor;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D11 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Theory
    • J00 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - General

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp5138. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Holger Hinte (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/izaaade.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.