- The Oxford Handbook of Women and the Economy
- About the Editors
- Contributors
- Introduction: Women, the Economy, and Economics
- Marriage-Market Search and Sorting: Explanations and Evidence
- Marriage and Marriage Markets
- Marital Instability in the United States: Trends, Driving Forces, and Implications for Children
- Marriage Markets in Developing Countries
- Fertility Issues and Policy in Developing Countries
- Fertility Issues in Developed Countries
- Fertility Policy in Developed Countries
- Nonmarital and Teen Fertility
- Access and Use of Contraception and Its Effects on Women’s Outcomes in the United States
- Child Gender and the Family
- Maternal Socioeconomic Status and the Well-Being of the Next Generation(s)
- US Child Care Policy and Economic Impacts
- Maternity and Family Leave Policy
- The Causes and Consequences of Increased Female Education and Labor Force Participation in Developing Countries
- The Gender Wage Gap in Developed Countries
- Women, Work, and Family
- Occupation and Gender
- Taxes, Transfers, and Women’s Labor Supply in the United States
- Gender Differences in Behavioral Traits and Labor Market Outcomes
- Biology and Gender in the Labor Market
- Women and Leadership
- Women in the Workplace and Management Practices: Theory and Evidence
- Racial Differences in American Women’s Labor Market Outcomes: A Long-Run View
- Women and the Labor Market: A Feminist Perspective
- Gender: A Historical Perspective
- Understanding Differences in Mortality and Morbidity by Sex: The Role of Biological, Social, and Economic Factors
- Women’s Labor Market Status and Economic Development
- Women and Migration
- The Care Penalty and Gender Inequality
- Women and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Are Differences in Education and Careers Due to Stereotypes, Interests, or Family?
- Women’s Homelessness: International Evidence on Causes, Consequences, Coping, and Policies
- Index
Abstract and Keywords
This article explains why care work often imposes a financial penalty that contributes to gender inequality. The work of caring for others—whether unpaid or paid—often involves more personal connection, emotional attachment, and moral commitment than other forms of work. It creates both public and private benefits, and its value is difficult to measure. All these factors put care providers at an economic disadvantage. This article argues that specialization in care is costly because it reduces both individual and collective bargaining power—that is, it puts individual caregivers at a disadvantage and makes it more difficult for women, as a group, to challenge gender bias and discrimination.
Keywords: care, unpaid work, gender inequality, specialization, market failure, externality
Nancy Folbre, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
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- The Oxford Handbook of Women and the Economy
- About the Editors
- Contributors
- Introduction: Women, the Economy, and Economics
- Marriage-Market Search and Sorting: Explanations and Evidence
- Marriage and Marriage Markets
- Marital Instability in the United States: Trends, Driving Forces, and Implications for Children
- Marriage Markets in Developing Countries
- Fertility Issues and Policy in Developing Countries
- Fertility Issues in Developed Countries
- Fertility Policy in Developed Countries
- Nonmarital and Teen Fertility
- Access and Use of Contraception and Its Effects on Women’s Outcomes in the United States
- Child Gender and the Family
- Maternal Socioeconomic Status and the Well-Being of the Next Generation(s)
- US Child Care Policy and Economic Impacts
- Maternity and Family Leave Policy
- The Causes and Consequences of Increased Female Education and Labor Force Participation in Developing Countries
- The Gender Wage Gap in Developed Countries
- Women, Work, and Family
- Occupation and Gender
- Taxes, Transfers, and Women’s Labor Supply in the United States
- Gender Differences in Behavioral Traits and Labor Market Outcomes
- Biology and Gender in the Labor Market
- Women and Leadership
- Women in the Workplace and Management Practices: Theory and Evidence
- Racial Differences in American Women’s Labor Market Outcomes: A Long-Run View
- Women and the Labor Market: A Feminist Perspective
- Gender: A Historical Perspective
- Understanding Differences in Mortality and Morbidity by Sex: The Role of Biological, Social, and Economic Factors
- Women’s Labor Market Status and Economic Development
- Women and Migration
- The Care Penalty and Gender Inequality
- Women and Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM): Are Differences in Education and Careers Due to Stereotypes, Interests, or Family?
- Women’s Homelessness: International Evidence on Causes, Consequences, Coping, and Policies
- Index
