Structural Determinants of Female Labor Force Participation in Developed Nations, 1955-1975

In: Social science quarterly, Band 66, Heft 3, S. 654-667

Abstract

Reviewed are structural explanations of F LF participation that have focused on (1) economic growth & demand for F workers, (2) family roles & fertility, (3) structure of the state, (4) class inequality, & (5) population competition. These are tested using cross-national & longitudinal data for a sample of 16 advanced industrial nations over 5 time points from 1955-1975. Ordinary least squares estimates show some support for most of these explanations; however, the effects of the population sex ratio, a variable ignored in most studies, emerged as the strongest influence. In Tracking a Ghost to Test a Theory, Andrea Tyree (State U of New York, Stony Brook) argues that, since the sociological study of sex-specific LFs is restricted by ceilings, many statistical tools are inappropriate for analysis. Additionally, the responsiveness of the F LF to changes in its numbers cannot be interpreted as a consequence of the competition between Ms & Fs for jobs, but is due to expansions & contractions of the total LF promoted by variations in the size of the F population. Fs absorb virtually all of these LF increases & decreases, while the M LF is unaffected. In More on the Meaning of the Effect of the Sex Ratio on Female Labor Force Participation, Ward & Pampel reanalyze their original data using Tyree's methods & find support for their "population competition" hypothesis. It is argued that competition may not be a zero-sum game, since in a number of countries after WWII, shortage of M workers led to a rise in Fs' share of typically M occupations. Though their hypothesis is supported, Ward & Pampel argue that Tyree's methods provide highly unstable results; the use of traditional regression methods is recommended. 5 Tables, 40 References. K. Hyatt