From Ignorance to Recognition: Time to Give Women Their Due in Economics

Friday - November 3 2023, 03:19 UTC - 1 year ago

Harvard labor economist Claudia Goldin was recently honored with the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for her decades of work studying the gender pay gap. Women are underrepresented as both economists and in traditional economic models. Goldin's groundbreaking research has turned the spotlight on the pivotal roles of women in the economy and contributed to the establishment of more robust support systems for women. On Oct. 7, 2023, the U.S. government also rolled out an unlimited amount of paid parental leave for federal workers.

Economic history has long been chronicled through a male lens, emphasizing the contributions of men and their viewpoints. For proof, just look to the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences. It’s been awarded to 90 men since 1969 – and just three women. The third woman to win the prize, distinguished Harvard labor economist Claudia Goldin, was honored on Oct. 9, 2023, for her decades of work studying the gender pay gap. It wasn’t a victory just for her but for women in the field.

As an economist, I take this issue personally. My field has a huge gender gap. Only 24% of tenure-track faculty in economics are women. In contrast, women make up 43% of tenure-track faculty across academia as a whole.

More than just stocks and bonds .

Part of the problem is that economics is often stereotypically associated with finance, money and banking. This narrow perception might not appeal to everyone. Women in particular tend to be drawn to areas that have direct bearing on social challenges.

But economics is about much more than just the stock market. In fact, vast areas of the discipline deal with social issues – health, development, education and, yes, gender inequality.

For instance, labor economists study issues like family leave policies and the gender pay gap – areas that directly affect women’s lives.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise, then, that women have had a greater presence in labor economics than in other subfields.

Women have also historically been drawn to health economics, development economics and education economics. But those fields don’t get as much attention, and the public sometimes doesn’t even recognize them as being part of economics at all.

They may even get the short shrift in Econ 101. A study of introductory economics textbooks found that 75% of people named in them were men. Women weren’t even equally represented in hypothetical examples.

Where are the women? .

Not only are women underrepresented as economists, economics as a field has historically ignored the role women play in the economy. Even as the study of family economics gained traction in the 1970s, the pivotal roles of women were often sidelined.

Traditional models often oversimplified households’ decision-making processes and overlooked women’s contributions. This led economists to undervalue the unpaid labor women provided in households and perpetuate stereotypical gender roles in their analyses.

Goldin has challenged these traditional male-centric narratives. Through her groundbreaking research – particularly on wage inequalities and the "motherhood penalty" – Goldin has turned the spotlight on women’s economic roles and challenges.

Her findings reveal the complexities of wage disparities, emphasizing issues like the challenges women face after childbirth. For instance, career interruptions such as maternity leave or reduced work hours to care for children and other relatives can reduce women’s earnings and job prospects in the long term.

It’s vital to note that Goldin’s research doesn’t attribute the gender pay gap to employer discrimination. Instead, her insights advocate for the establishment of robust support systems.

Strenghtening policies .

Goldin’s research provides crucial support for better paid maternity and paternity leave policies. For instance, on Oct. 7, 2023, the U.S. government rolled out an unlimited amount of paid parental leave for federal workers.