The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences granted the 2023 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel to Claudia Goldin of Harvard University. Her research has illuminated the nuanced history of women’s earnings and labour force engagement in the US over two centuries. Goldin’s work outlines how societal changes and evolving norms impacted women’s participation in the workforce, offering valuable insights into the gender gap.
Through her extensive data collection spanning 200 years, Goldin revealed the trajectory of female labour force involvement, portraying a U-shaped pattern influenced by shifting societal structures. She linked declining participation in the 19th century to the industrial transition, followed by a resurgence with the growth of the service sector in the 20th century, attributing these shifts to evolving social norms and structural changes.
Her research emphasizes the crucial role of education in empowering women, highlighting the impact of access to contraceptive measures on career planning. Despite increased education levels for women, the persistent earnings gap between genders, especially after the birth of the first child, remains a critical focus of Goldin’s work. She underlines how early educational choices shape lifelong career opportunities and how societal expectations influence these decisions.
Goldin’s research challenges prior assumptions, indicating that the primary earnings difference today exists between men and women in the same occupation, notably arising after childbirth. Her work sheds light on the complexities of gender disparities and urges society to address underlying barriers for women in the workforce.
This groundbreaking research by Claudia Goldin offers essential insights into women’s historical and contemporary roles in the labour force, providing a clearer understanding of factors influencing the gender gap and emphasizing the need to address barriers to the future advancement of women in the workforce.
