Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

Working Paper Series,
Research Institute of Industrial Economics

No 1283: Economic Incentives, Childcare and Gender Identity Norms

Andrea Ichino (), Martin Olsson (), Barbara Petrongolo () and Peter Skogman Thoursie ()
Additional contact information
Andrea Ichino: European University Institute, Postal: U. Bologna and CEPR
Martin Olsson: Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN), Postal: and IFAU
Barbara Petrongolo: Queen Mary University London, Postal: CEP (LSE) and CEPR
Peter Skogman Thoursie: Stockholm University and IFAU

Abstract: This paper investigates the role of gender identity norms in shaping men's and women's time allocation, based on observed behavior following a change in the market penalty for adopting prescriptive norms. To perform this test, we study the reallocation of childcare across parents, following changes in their relative take-home pay. Exploiting variation from Swedish tax reforms, we estimate the elasticity of substitution in parental childcare for natives and immigrants from a variety of countries, characterized by varying gender norms. We find that couples originating from countries with relatively conservative norms are more likely to reallocate childcare across spouses following a reduction in the husband's tax rate, and less likely to reallocate childcare following a reduction in the wife's tax rate, thereby reinforcing a traditional allocation of childcare across parents.

Keywords: Childcare; Gender identity; Gender gaps

JEL-codes: D13; H24; J22

58 pages, First version: June 4, 2019. Revised: May 4, 2021. Earlier revisions: October 20, 2020, May 4, 2021.

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