Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/36287 
Year of Publication: 
2009
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 4515
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Using German panel data from 1984 to 2007, we analyze the impact of labor division between husband and wife on the risk of divorce. Gary Becker's theory of marriage predicts that specialization in domestic and market work, respectively, reduces the risk of separation. Traditionally, the breadwinner role is assigned to the husband, however, female labor force participation and their wages have risen substantially. Our results suggest that there are gender-specific differences, e.g. female breadwinner-couples have a substantially higher risk of divorce than male breadwinner-couples. In contrast, the equal division does not significantly alter the probability of separation.
Subjects: 
Divorce
labor division
Germany
JEL: 
J12
J22
Persistent Identifier of the first edition: 
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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