Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/73046 
Year of Publication: 
2012
Series/Report no.: 
MAGKS Joint Discussion Paper Series in Economics No. 41-2012
Publisher: 
Philipps-University Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Marburg
Abstract: 
We investigate why female labour market participation is low in the Arab region. Utilising Akerlof and Kranton's (2000) identity economics approach, we show in a simple gametheoretic framework that women socialised in a traditional family environment violate their identities by taking a job. In the empirical analysis, we study the respective impact of two determinants of identity in the Arab region, Islam and cultural tradition. Employing two waves of the World Values Survey, we find significant evidence that identity affects female labour market participation. Moreover, our estimates suggest that in the Arab region, Muslim women do not participate in the labour market less than non-Muslim women, whereas those with strong traditional identities have a 7 percentage point lower probability of entering the labour market.
Subjects: 
Female labour market participation
Arab region
Islam
Identity
Religion
JEL: 
J16
J21
Z12
Z13
O53
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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