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Should Mothers Work? How Perceptions of the Social Norm Affect Individual Attitudes Toward Work in the U.S

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Abstract
We study how peer beliefs shape individual attitudes toward maternal labor supply using realistic hypothetical scenarios that elicit recommendations on the labor supply choices of a mother with a young child and an information treatment embedded within representative surveys. Across the scenarios, we find that individuals systematically overestimate the extent of gender conservativeness among the people around them. Exposure to information on peer beliefs leads to a shift in recommendations, driven largely by information-based belief updating. The information treatment also increases (intended and actual) donations to a nonprofit organization advocating for women in the workplace.

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  • Patricia Cortes & Gizem Koşar & Jessica Pan & Basit Zafar, 2022. "Should Mothers Work? How Perceptions of the Social Norm Affect Individual Attitudes Toward Work in the U.S," Staff Reports 1038, Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
    • Handle: RePEc:fip:fednsr:94979
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    Cited by:

    1. Boneva, Teodora & Golin, Marta & Kaufmann, Katja Maria & Rauh, Christopher, 2022. "Beliefs about Maternal Labor Supply," IZA Discussion Papers 15788, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Haddad, Joanne & Kattan, Lamis, 2024. "Female-Specific Labor Regulation and Employment: Historical Evidence from the United States," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1518, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    3. Federica Meluzzi, 2024. "The College Melting Pot: Peers, Culture and Women's Job Search," Papers 2409.20225, arXiv.org.
    4. Bursztyn, Leonardo & Cappelen, Alexander & Tungodden, Bertil & Voena, Alessandra & Yanagizawa-Drott, David, 2023. "How Are Gender Norms Perceived?," Discussion Paper Series in Economics 5/2023, Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    expectations; social norms; information treatment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D84 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Expectations; Speculations
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • C83 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Data Collection and Data Estimation Methodology; Computer Programs - - - Survey Methods; Sampling Methods

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