Children and their parents resemble each other in terms of economic preferences such as patience and risk tolerance. What drives the intergenerational correlation in preferences? We build a model of preference formation that combines genetic transmission, state influence through childcare...

Standard models of the family assume that spouses share information. In this paper, we challenge this assumption with theory and evidence. We field a new survey module in the Dutch LISS panel where spouses independently report their knowledge of each other's finances. Private information is...

This paper examines how personality shapes intra-household bargaining, marital stability, and the allocation of resources within marriages. We use rich data from the HILDA Survey that combines information on spouses' personalities, wages, time use, and marital histories. In the data, personality...

Dynamic household bargaining models are growing in popularity but are computationally demanding to solve and estimate. We propose a modification to the endogenous grid method (EGM) that allows this class of models to reap the benefits of the EGM. The method, which we refer to as interpolated EGM...

We study the role of gender role attitudes (GRA)—beliefs about appropriate roles for men and women—in marital sorting and intra-household allocations. Using the UK Household Longitudinal Study and a multidimensional matching model, we estimate the contribution of GRA to the joint marriage...

We study the role of Gender Role Attitudes (GRA) - beliefs about appropriate roles for men and women - in marital sorting and intra-household allocations. Using the UK Household Longitudinal Study and a multidimensional matching model following Dupuy and Galichon (2014), we estimate the...

This work examines the effect of next-generation broadband on marriage rates among opposite- and same-sex couples in Spain. Given that the decision to sustain a relationship and enter into marriage is influenced by a broad spectrum of opportunities, high-speed broadband access can play a pivotal...

This paper studies how family and firm investments interact to explain gender gaps in career achievement. Using Danish administrative data, we first document novel evidence of this interaction through a “spousal effect” on firm-side career investments. This effect is accounted for by family...

I investigate the intra-household labor and resource allocation consequences of an employment guarantee targeting rural households in India. The guarantee insures household earnings, replacing women as added workers and shutting down a motive for saving. Despite sizable program-job take-up, the...

Families play an important role in providing insurance against adverse shocks, but little is known about how shocks affect the family structure itself. We study the impact of a labor market shock on divorce and intra-household allocation of resources, exploiting a naturalexperimental earthquake...

Since 1972, the General Social Survey has periodically asked whether people are happy with Yes, Maybe or No type answers. Here I use a net "happiness" measure, which is percentage Yes less percentage No with Maybe treated as zero. Average happiness is around +20 on this scale for all respondents...

An often neglected implication of couple taxation is its impact on marital sorting. A tractable model of such an impact is offered in this paper. It reveals that, as compared to joint taxation with income splitting, individual taxation makes higher-ability individuals more picky in the marriage...

This paper studies how family and firm investments interact to explain gender gaps in career achievement. Using Danish administrative data, we first document novel evidence of this interaction through a "spousal effect" on firm-side career investments. This effect is accounted for by family...

In sub-Saharan Africa, the gap in fertility preferences between men and women may influence household fertility outcomes as men usually desire more children and have more intra-household bargaining power. We estimate the effect of an informational family planning program that randomizes the...

Immigrant households frequently face liquidity constraints upon arrival, which potentially hinders their long-term economic integration. The Family Investment Hypothesis (FIH) suggests that couples may respond to these constraints by coordinating their labor supply: one spouse works to finance...

How married couples allocate their time across activities has been studied in developed countries, but remains an open question in many developing countries. We pool the 2019 and 2024 waves of the India Time Use Survey (TUS), the two most recent nationally representative surveys, to analyze the...

This study explores the marriage matching of only-child individuals and the related outcomes. Specifically, we analyze two aspects: First, we investigate the marriage patterns of only children, examining whether people choose mates in a positive or negative assortative manner regarding...

College graduates tend to marry each other. We use detailed Norwegian data to show that strong assortativity further arises by institution and field of study, especially among high earners from elite programs. Admission discontinuities reveal that enrollment itself, rather than selection,...

Husbands are often key stakeholders and influential in women's enterprise performance. Intrahousehold constraints and relational dynamics may contribute to a gender gap in entrepreneurship. This mixed-methods paper uses a randomized controlled trial and qualitative research to examine whether...

Two mechanisms have been proposed to explain sex selection in India: son preference in which parents desire a male heir and daughter aversion in which dowry payments make parents worse off with girls. Our model incorporates both mechanisms, providing micro-foundations, based on the organization...

This paper investigates the causal impact of free primary education (FPE) on fertility decisions among parents in sub-Saharan Africa, focusing on the interplay between the policy, intra-household bargaining, and cultural norms. Using Demographic and Health Survey data and exploiting the...

Unpaid domestic work continues to fall largely on women, despite their growing presence in the workforce. This paper asks whether policies changing the relative bargaining position of spouses can disrupt this pattern. I use the introduction of a bachelor tax in fascist Italy to show that...

Marriage market imbalances have been linked to social instability, crime, and reduced welfare in both developing and developed countries. We revisit this issue in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa, where high population growth and the prevalence of polygyny shape partner availability in...