In the modern day, nearly every outcome relating to matters of affection and matrimony is better understood by subjecting our thoughts within an economic framework. Issues ranging from divorce rates to man shortage in relationships can be vividly elaborated using market values. In human life, the aspects of love and marriage usually examine the supply and demand of intimate human needs. The essay investigates the relationship between the two aspects through an analysis of the two articles. The contents will provide the research questions posed by the authors, describe the data used and economic model incorporated as well as discourse the empirical results and conclusions reached by the authors of both articles.
Research Questions
The Demand for Sons by Dahl, Gordon, and Enrico examines the question whether parents have a gender preference for their children and if it has a negative implication for either the male or female offspring. Before conducting the actual research, the authors hypothesized that most parents have a gender-biased preference for male offspring over females. The notion stemmed from the belief that a lack of the latter is harmful or the fathers have various comparative benefits of raising sons (Darl et al. 1086)
The research question in Waiting for Mr. Right: Rising Inequality and Declining Marriage by Gould, Eric and Daniele questions the probable relationship that may exist between male wage inequality and marriage rate by the opposite sex. The authors hypothesize that an upsurge in the male disparities causes a subsequent increase in the distribution of quality spouses which also causes women to devote added time searching for their ideal husbands.
Data and Economic Models
The study conducted by Dahl, Gordon, and Enrico assumes single and unmarried men with children since data collected from secondary sources reveals that children are living in households which have parents of the opposite sex and share premises recording less than 5 percent. Data was documented by examining how child gender affects the prospect that a child stays in a home without a father figure. Subsequently, the researchers assessed the relevancy of the three principal channels capable of spurring gender differences in the absence of a male parent. (Dahl et al. 1088). The three channels are custody, marriage, and divorce. The econometric analysis relied on the three probabilities. These are the difference in probability of divorce the difference in the probability of divorce and the difference in probability of having a single parent all on condition the father is married. The empirical model used employs a generalized linear model since it probability for gender differential predicts the expected value of male child preference of unknown quantity of the likelihood of the existence of a father.
In the establishment of a relationship between inequality and the rate of marriage and examination of the suggested hypothesis, data from previous research studies were examined. The evidence from a census conducted in 1990 reveals that a strong connection between the two variables since the empirical data collected shows that about four out ten (40 percent) of metropolitan areas posted high levels of male wage inequality (Gould et al. 258). The researchers implemented individual-level data with the aim of managing various human characteristics such as education and age. The data was also incorporated to control city-level variables used to distinguish the marriage market and local labor market. The economic model used in the study is a simple regression model that is defined by a mathematical relation grounded by economic theory. The theory assumes that an economic phenomenon such as women spending times searching for ideal husbands is an outcome of the cumulative effect of two factors: The determinant factor (male wage inequality) and an invariable factor of the phenomenon (female marriage rate).
Empirical results and Conclusion
The results of the research conducted by Dahl, Gordon, and Enrico reveals that child gender affects a childs chance of living without a father figure. It was also found that the gender differences in custody, divorce, and marriage all play an influential role in the phenomenon where a child stays in a home without a father. An investigation of these factors revealed that gender difference in divorce rates as an essential factor in elaborating gender differences if a child stays without a father in early years. The researchers suggest two possible lead causes for the occurrence of the differences. Firstly, it is likely that the parents are gender biased with preference favoring male children. Alternatively, it is also likely that parents are unbiased, but each parent holds an individual preference for their gender (Dahl et al. 1102)
On the other hand, the results from the study Gould, Eric, and Daniele reveal a strong association between wage inequality by males and female marriage rate. The outcome stems from the former opting to wait longer while choosing a suitable partner since the distribution of prospective partners is widely spread or that the competitive environment is very diverse that it caters for the choice by females to spend time searching for quality males before settling down. Since rank variable controls male suitability in local wage distribution, higher ranked men are regarded as the ideal partners (Gould et al. 278). Consequently, it creates a higher male inequality that lowers marriage rate in women.
Works Cited
Dahl, Gordon, and Enrico Moretti. 2008. The Demand for Sons. The Review of Economic Studies 75: 1085-1120.
Gould, Eric and Daniele Paserman. 2003. Waiting for Mr. Right: Rising Inequality and Declining Marriage Rates. Journal of Urban Economics 53: 257-281.
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