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Robots, Marriageable Men, Family, and Fertility

Author

Listed:
  • Massimo Anelli
  • Osea Giuntella
  • Luca Stella
Abstract
Robots have radically changed the demand for skills and the role of workers in production. This phenomenon has replaced routine and mostly physical work of blue collar workers, but it has also created positive employment spillovers in other occupations and sectors that require more social interaction and managing skills. This study examines how the exposure to robots and its heterogeneous effects on the labor market opportunities of men and women affected demographic behavior. We focus on the United States and find that in regions that were more exposed to robots, gender gaps in income and labor force participation declined, reducing the relative economic stature of men. Regions affected by intense robot penetration experienced also an increase in both divorce and cohabitation and a decline –albeit non-significant– in the number of marriages. While there was no change in the overall fertility rate, marital fertility declined, and there was an increase in nonmarital births. Our findings provide support to the hypothesis that changes in labor market structures that affect the absolute and relative prospects of men may reduce their marriage-market value and affect marital and fertility behavior.

Suggested Citation

  • Massimo Anelli & Osea Giuntella & Luca Stella, 2021. "Robots, Marriageable Men, Family, and Fertility," CESifo Working Paper Series 9378, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_9378
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Gihleb, Rania & Giuntella, Osea & Stella, Luca & Wang, Tianyi, 2022. "Industrial robots, Workers’ safety, and health," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    3. Karina Doorley & Jan Gromadzki & Piotr Lewandowski & Dora Tuda & Philippe Van Kerm, 2023. "Automation and income inequality in Europe," IBS Working Papers 06/2023, Instytut Badan Strukturalnych.
    4. Albinowski, Maciej & Lewandowski, Piotr, 2024. "The impact of ICT and robots on labour market outcomes of demographic groups in Europe," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    5. Honorata Bogusz & Anna Matysiak & Michaela Kreyenfeld, 2023. "Structural Labour Market Change, Cognitive Work, and Fertility in Germany," Working Papers 2023-08, Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw.
    6. Anna Matysiak & Daniela Bellani & Honorata Bogusz, 2023. "Industrial Robots and Regional Fertility in European Countries," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 39(1), pages 1-36, December.
    7. Nikolova, Milena & Lepinteur, Anthony & Cnossen, Femke, 2023. "Just another cog in the machine? A worker-level view of robotization and tasks," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1350, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    8. Giuntella, Osea & König, Johannes & Stella, Luca, 2023. "Artificial Intelligence and Workers' Well-Being," IZA Discussion Papers 16485, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Claudio Costanzo, 2022. "Robots, Jobs, and Optimal Fertility Timing," Working Papers ECARES 2022-36, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    10. Zhu, Ruini & Yuan, Ye & Wang, Yaojing, 2024. "Love, health, and robots: Automation, migration, and family responses in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    11. Jepsen, Christopher & Jepsen, Lisa, 2022. "Convergence over time or not? U.S. wages by sexual orientation, 2000–2019," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    12. Rezaee Vessal, Sara & De Giovanni, Pietro & Hassanzadeh, Alborz, 2022. "Technology and service investments in the presence of feature fatigue and word-of-mouth," European Journal of Operational Research, Elsevier, vol. 301(3), pages 923-941.
    13. Hyejin Kim, 2024. "The impact of robots on labor demand: evidence from job vacancy data in South Korea," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 67(3), pages 1185-1209, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    automation; marriage market; divorce; cohabitation; fertility; gender;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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