Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/196683 
Year of Publication: 
2019
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 12185
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
Partner selection is a vital feature of human behavior with important consequences for individuals, families, and society. Hypergamy occurs when a husband’s earning capacity systematically exceeds that of his wife. We provide a theoretical framework that rationalizes hypergamy even in the absence of gender differences in the distribution of earnings capacity. Using parental earnings rank, a predetermined measure of earnings capacity that solves the simultaneity problem of matching affecting earnings outcomes, we show that hypergamy is an important feature of Norwegian mating patterns. A vignette experiment identifies gender differences in preferences that can explain the observed patterns.
Subjects: 
marriage
gender identity
labor supply
household specialization
JEL: 
J12
D10
J22
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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