The Impact of Female Labor Force Participation on Regional Economic and Income Convergence

REY S. J. and MONTOURI B. D. (1999) US regional income convergence: a spatial econometric perspective, Reg. Studies 33 , 143-156. This study reconsiders the question of US regional economic income convergence from a spatial econometric perspective. Recently developed methods of exploratory spatial data analysis provide new insights on the geographical dynamics of US regional income growth patterns over the 1929-94 period. Strong patterns of both global and local spatial autocorrelation are found throughout the study period, and the magnitude of global spatial autocorrelation is also found to exhibit strong temporal co-movement with regional income dispersion. A spatial econometric analysis of the familiar Baumol specification reveals strong evidence of misspecification due to ignored spatial error dependence. Because of this dependence, shocks originating in one state can spillover into surrounding states, potentially complicating the transitional dynamics of the convergence process. REY S. J. et MONTOURI B. D. (1999) La convergence du revenu régional aux Etats-Unis: une perspective économétrique, spatiale, Reg. Studies 33 , 143-156. Cette étude remet en cause la convergence du revenu économique régional à partir d'une perspective économétrique, spatiale. De nouvelles méthodes qui permettent une première analyse des données spatiales, fournissent un autre aperçu sur la dynamique géographique de la répartition de la croissance du revenu régional aux Etats-Unis de 1929 à 1994. Pendant toute la période étudiée, de fortes autocorrélations géographiques à la fois globales et locales sont à noter. Il s'avère aussi que l'ampleur de l'autocorrélation spatiale, globale va de pair dans le temps avec la dispersion du revenu régional. Une analyse économétrique, spatiale de la spécification bien connue de Baumol fait preuve de la mauvaise spécification duè a la dépendance vis à vis des erreurs spatiales à laquelle on n'a pas fait attention. A cause de cette dépendance, des chocs qui proviennent d'un état particulier peuvent avoir des retombées sur les états limitrophes, ce qui risque de compliquer la dynamique transitoire du processusdeconvergence. REY S. J. und MONTOURI B. D. (1999) Konvergenz regionaler Einkommen in den Vereinigten Staaten: ein räumlich- ökonometrischer Ausblick, Reg. Studies 33 , 143‐156. Diese Studie behandelt noch einmal die Frage der Konvergenz regionaler Einkommen in den Vereinigten Staaten vom Standpunkt der räumlichen Ökonometrie aus. Kürzlich entwickelte Methoden einer Analyse räumlicher Untersuchungsdaten verschaffen neue Einsichten in die geographische Dynamik der Muster regionalen Wachstums von Einkommen in den Vereinigten Staaten im Zeitraum 1929‐ 94. Für die genannte Untersuchungsperiode werden robuste Muster globaler wie auch örtlicher räumlicher Autokorrelationen festgestellt, wobei der Umfang letzterer sich zudem als in kräftigem zeitlichem Gleichschritt mit der Streuung regionaler Einkommen erweist. Eine räumliche ökonometrische Analyse der bekannten Baumol Spezifizierung liefert handfeste Beweise fehlerhafter Spezifizierungen infolge unbeachtet gebliebener Abhängigkeit von räumlichen Irrtümern. Dank dieser Abhängigkeit kann der Schock eines Staates in Nachbarstaaten Kreise ziehen, und die Übergangsdynamik des Konvergenzprozesses verkomplizieren.

Abstract. The paper contributes by providing new insights into the relationship between female labor force and economic growth in 162 world countries over the period 19902012. It was hypothesized that an analysis would reveal a U-shaped relationship between female labor force participation and economic growth. The analysis is run from two different perspectives - in the first, the relationship is examined for a sample encompassing 162 countries; and in the second - the evidence is disaggregated and the relationship is re-examined within four income-groups (low-income, lower-middle-income, upper-middle-income and high-income). To examine these relationships, data on female labor force participation and per capita income are extracted from the World Development Indicators 2013 database, and the relationship is examined by deploying panel data analysis assuming non-linearity between variables. The main findings support the hypothesis of the U-shaped relationship between female labor force participation and economic growth, however high cross-country variability on the field is reported. Moreover, the U-shaped feminization hypothesis was not positively verified in the case of low-income countries.Keywords: women, female labor force, feminization, U-shaped curve, economic growthJEL classification: J21, O10, O50IntroductionThe worldwide trends can be summarized as exhibiting a relatively steady relationship between women`s participation in the labor market and the stage of economic growth. A great majority of empirical studies demonstrate that in the initial phases of economic growth female labor force participation tends to be decreasing, while after reaching a certain level of output per capita, a positive relationship emerges and women`s engagement in the labor market grad-10.14254/2071789X.2015/8-1/19 ually increases. In this vein, the following paper contributes to the present state of knowledge by providing extensive evidence on re-examination of the hypothesis, according to which the statistical relationship between female labor force participation and economic growth follows the U-shaped pattern.The main goal of the paper is twofold. First, the authors provide new evidence on the U-shaped association between female labor force participation and economic growth in 162 countries over the period 1990-2012. To enrich the analysis, the authors deliberately disaggregate the evidence and exhibits by examining relationships in four distinct income-groups, namely: low-income, lower-middle-income, upper-middle-income and high-income countries1. Disaggregating the evidence sheds light on the issue providing a novel insight, and allows us to determine whether the U-feminization hypothesis is revealed only in the world sample, or -preferably - is held in respective income-groups. The data used in the consecutive analysis are exclusively derived from the World Development Indicators 2013 database. To meet the main empirical objectives, the preliminary graphical evidences are supported by the static and dynamic panel econometric methods.This paper is structured as follows. The introductory part is followed by sections explaining the conceptual background, data and methodological strategy. Sections 4 and 5 demonstrate empirical results, and the last part is the conclusion.1. BackgroundIn 1965 Sinha suggested that the feminization of labor force and the level of economic growth are described by the long-term U-shaped relationship. Since then onward, a substantial body of both theoretical and empirical evidence has concentrated on the cited relationship, giving updated insights into the issue. Although the relationship between female labor force participation and the level of economic growth is relatively stable and robust over time, still the outcomes vary if accounting for various countries or country groups.As already argued, a sizeable amount of evidence suggests a U-shaped relationship between female labor force (FLF) participation and economic growth (Tam, 2011; Lechman and Okonowicz, 2013; Olivetti, 2013; Tsani et al. …

Previous studies regarding the impact of FDI on regional economic growth and income convergence in China have mixed results and are far from being conclusive due to different datasets and methodologies used. This study thus used a panel data from China Statistical Yearbook covering all 31 Chinese regions to better understand the impact of FDI on regional economic growth and income convergence in China. For the period between 1999 and 2017, it found that neither FDI inflow nor labor has a statistically significant impact on the provincial economic growth. However, domestic investment in fixed assets does have a statistically significant impact on the provincial economic growth. Moreover, there is no absolute ? income convergence among regions. Nonetheless, there is a conditional ? income convergence (a moderate convergence speed of 7.49%) after controlling for all other growth factors: domestic investment in fixed assets, population growth rate, FDI inflow, export, and higher education enrollment.

This paper describes how the composition of the labor force changes with economic development. It considers recent trends in women's labor force participation and the type of jobs held in various sectors as national per capita income increases. The paper notes that women are more likely to work in the family or informal labor market if the labor costs to firms exceed the opportunity costs of female labor to family enterprises. Firms are at a relative disadvantage compared with families in the employment of less experienced and less skilled labor, presumably because their labor costs are affected by such regulations as minimum wage, social insurance premiums and limits on firing. In Asia and Africa, an increase in the proportion of employment in firms within the major sectors accounts for most of the rapid growth in women's overall share of wage employment. In Latin America, however, growth in the proportion of firm employment has been slower than elsewhere, and the share of women in wage employment has even fallen overall in several countries. It is not unreasonable to assume that women have lost more than men from market regulations and distortions, but little research has addressed this proposition. If it is true, however, these interventions in the labor market may be responsible for slowing women's transition from nonmarket and family work to firm employment. This in turn may affect the rate and structure of economic growth.

This paper uses 1980 US census tract data from Boston, Denver, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and St. Louis to examine spatial variation between male and female unemployment and labor force participation. Research shows that families and individuals with characteristics making them more prone to unemployment tend to live in central cities. Suburban workers living far from the city's center may also have higher unemployment rates due to higher job search and commuting costs. Female workers differ from male workers by earning less money, working fewer hours, and often, by valuing their travel time to work more highly. This study's variables include age, race, education, language, past migration experience, and occupation. In all of the unemployment equations, the percentage of black and education variables are highly significant. Distance variables are not significant in the overall unemployment equation, but distance is highly significant and positive in the female model: Women's unemployment rates are low for the central city and relatively high for suburban census tracts. Male unemployment is high in the central city, low in the suburbs, and becomes higher again at 10 miles distance from the center. The authors believe that job related information decreases as the worker moves farther from the central city. Labor force participation equations also show significant distance to have a detrimental effect on female participation but a positive effect on male participation. Demanding home roles may constrain womens' job choices; women are twice as likely as men to indicate self-imposed job location and work hour limitations. This paper's results suggest that unemployment reduction tactics such as improving transportation will affect male workers more than female workers, and may affect men and women differently. Continued research needs to consider the enormous increase in female labor force participation and develop economic theories appropriate for 2-earner households.

The increase in income per capita is accompanied, in virtually all countries, by two changes in economic structure: the increase in the share of government spending in gross domestic product (GDP), and the increase in female labor force participation. We argue that these two changes are causally related. We develop a growth model based on Galor and Weil (1996) where female participation in market activities, fertility, and government size, in addition to consumption and saving, is endogenously determined. Rising incomes lead to a rise in female labor force participation as the opportunity cost of staying at home and caring for the children increases. In our model, higher government spending decreases the cost of performing household chores, including, but not limited to, child rearing and child care, as in Rosen (1996). We also use a wide cross-section of data for developed and developing countries and show that higher market participation by women is positively and robustly associated with government size. We then investigate the causal link between participation and government size using a novel unique data set that allows the use of the relative price of productive home appliances as an instrumental variable. We find strong evidence of a causal link between female market participation and government size. This effect is robust to the country sample, time period, and a set of controls in the spirit of Rodrik (1998). (JEL O4, E62, H11)

After taking into account the spatial dependence effects in the panel data consisting of all 31 provinces, direct-controlled municipalities, and autonomous regions in China between the years 1998 and 2017, it found significant spatial autocorrelation effects in both traditional absolute and conditional β income convergence models. At the national level, using the spatial econometric models (Spatial Error Model for absolute convergence and Spatial Durbin Model for conditional convergence), the analysis shows that in the past 19 years from 1999 to 2017, there is no absolute β income convergence. However, there is conditional β income convergence after controlling for all growth factors, while the positive effect of fixed asset investment on regional economic growth is significant, and the effect of population growth is significantly negative. The other growth factors such as FDI inflow, export, and higher education enrollment were surprisingly found no statistically significant effects on regional economic growth. From regional level (Spatial Durbin Model and Spatial Lag Model), there is no conditional β income convergence within each four economic regions. Nonetheless, the northeast region showed an income divergence trend, where only the fixed asset investment is positively significant. This study results imply that China should continue to improve fixed asset investment and control population growth to stimulate regional economic growth and income convergence.

The role of female education is crucial for the development of any country, especially for the third-world countries. The objective of this paper is to analyze the impact of female education and female labour force participation disparities serving as key influential factors of under-five mortality among some selected developing countries in Africa. Annual panel data sets of the selected countries from the year 2000 to 2017 were used for the study. The panel random effect model was used to estimate the polled data for the selected countries. Moreover, the time series multiple regression analysis was used to estimate the predictors of the disparities of under-five mortalities in the individual countries. The study also examined the major causes of the disparities in under-five mortality among the selected countries by emphasizing on female education as major predator of the disparities inter-alia some key control variables such as gross domestic product(GDP) per capita, educational expenditure, female labour force participation, and gross fixed capital. The paper concludes that female primary school enrolment and labour force participation are statistically significant and predominately strong predators of the disparities in the rate of under-five mortality among the selected countries. The study further recommends that health policies to reduce child mortality should be designed inter-alia with educational policies since education makes an individual more conscious about their health. Keywords: Female education; Under-five mortality; Female labour force participation, Education expenditure, Economic growth, Panel analysis. DOI : 10.7176/PPAR/9-3-14 Publication date :March 31 st 2019

I develop a model with status concerns to analyze how different economic factors affect female labor participation and welfare, as well as average household incomes and wages. Reductions in the price of domestic goods and increases in female wages have positive effects on female participation. Increases in male wages have different effects on female participation depending on whether they affect female wages or not. Events that lead to increases in female participation are usually associated with decreases in the welfare of stay-at-home wives but are not necessarily associated with increases in welfare of working wives. Allowing for part-time work can lead to an increase in overall female labor force participation, but some women that would have worked full-time end up working part-time. If female wages are endogenous, an increase in male wages leads to an increase in the female participation rate even if it is not associated with a decrease in the gender wage gap. The positive feedback of increased female participation on their wages can lead to hysteresis of dual equilibria of high and low female labor force participation and a discontinuous transition between these equilibria.

Economic literature highlights the vital role that women can play in enhancing the economic development of nations. However, there is still gender inequality in developing countries, especially in education and labour market participation. Although women represent nearly half of the population in Egypt, their labour force participation rate is still very low compared to men. This paper's primary goal is to investigate the short and long-run associations between female labour force participation and Egypt's GDP growth rate. The study used annual time series data from 1990-2019, where the vector error correction model (VECM) was employed. The study found that female labour force participation and the gross fixed capital formation growth rate can enhance the GDP growth rate in the long run. Nevertheless, there is no statistically significant relationship in the short run. This paper's main recommendations are that the Egyptian government needs to implement policies that encourage women's labour force participation and decrease gender inequality. These policies could be changes in legislation, modernization of social norms, Job flexibility, and increasing access to childcare. Moreover, they need to focus on both the demand and supply sides of the quality of female labour force participation by matching the women’s education with the creation of suitable jobs.

The Part-Time Premium Enigma:An Assessment of the Chilean Case Andrea Bentancor (bio) and Virginia Robano (bio) Working part-time has been seen by some researchers, public policy advisers, and politicians as a way for women to find a balance between home and paid work (Gregory and Connolly 2008; Bardasi and Gornick 2008). However, there is no agreement on the optimal balance. Indeed, there are contrasting views on the subject. Those in favor suggest that in the absence of part-time jobs, female labor-force participation would be substantially lower (Sundström 1991; Dekker 2008). According to this belief, women, confronted with the choice between working full-time and not working at all, would opt for the latter. On the other hand, detractors in European countries assert that part-time jobs imply a waste of resources and of investments in human capital, since the many part-time working women who are highly educated generally make a downward occupational move when they switch from full-time to part-time work (Gregory and Connolly 2008; Manning and Petrongolo 2008). [End Page 29] Furthermore, part-time jobs have adverse repercussions for the economic well-being of part-time working women, given that public social-welfare benefits, wage increases, and professional development might be scarce for these women (Leiva 2000; Warren 2008; Fernández-Kranz and others 2011; Fernández-Kranz and Rodríguez-Planas 2011). In addition, in member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), hourly earnings are lower (Manning and Petrongolo 2008) and employer-provided training less common (Gregory and Connolly 2008; Connolly and Gregory 2009) in part-time jobs than in full-time jobs. Furthermore, in those countries, though the hourly earnings gap between women and men in full-time work has been narrowing, the same is not the case for female part-time workers and males in full-time jobs (Manning and Petrongolo 2008). Part-time work among women after the birth of their first child is currently responsible for some of the pay gap between men and women (Kanji 2011). Chile’s rate of female labor-force participation is one of the lowest in Latin American countries (CEPAL/UN-ECLAC 2011), despite female educational attainment that is similar to or higher than that of other Latin American countries (Carrillo, Gandelman, and Robano 2013). To increase female labor-force participation, the Chilean government is promoting part-time (and home-based) work for women. Although part-time work is not as extensive as in other countries, the proportion of Chilean women working part-time has tripled in the past ten years, and part-time workers now represent more than 20 percent of the female workforce (National Socio-Economic Characterization Survey (Casen), 2009). Contreras, Puentes, and Bravo (2005) show that in Chile, the female laborforce participation rate is positively correlated with education. It is not apparent why female labor-force participation is so low. Discrimination in the labor market or, more generally, the existent gender wage gap favorable to males (Ñopo 2012; Carrillo, Gandelman, and Robano 2013) might partially explain the low female participation rate, as might cultural factors. Contreras and Plaza (2010) find that women who have internalized machista values are less likely to participate in the labor market. Despite concerns of endogeneity owing to data limitations, Contreras and Plaza (2010) find a negative relationship between female labor-force participation and conservative values. Puentes and Ruiz-Tagle (2011), using the Voz de Mujer survey, analyze the same phenomenon while controlling for possible endogenous relationships.1 [End Page 30] They find that cultural factors are not endogenously determined by a woman’s labor-participation decision; on the contrary, it seems that whether women work has little effect on cultural factors in the short term. According to their study, values develop in early childhood rather than during a woman’s working life. Interestingly, the same 2002 survey that Contreras and Plaza (2010) used was reapplied by the Centro de Estudios Públicos and released in April 2012.2 In both 2002 and 2012, 48 percent of interviewees stated that the most desirable choice for a woman with one child of preschool age was to work parttime, while her...

Female labour force participation is a key indicator of economic growth, especially in developing countries like India. This study, based on a household survey in Purulia, West Bengal, examines the determinants of informal work and wage factors among female workers. The study has used correlation matrix, one-way ANOVA and post hoc test. Sample selection models were applied to correct selection bias. The explanatory variables age, material status, numbers of child and monthly contribution of other household members were found to have a significant impact on the probability of female informal labour force participation. We found that the probability of engaging in the farm activities by the female workers were significantly influenced by their age, marital status and volume of land owned. The regressors age, year of experience in present work, nature of work, working hour, place of residence had significant impact on the wage-determination of female workers in informal sector.

Researchers have identified some of the factors affecting female labor force participation (FLFP) as: economic dependency, income inequality, family structure, and fertility, among others. This paper will study the impact of dependency ratios on female labor force participation in the US Border States with Mexico (Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and California). We use dependency ratios to measure the role of females’ as economic producers and active members of the labor force. The most important finding was that changes in population age structure, affects the female labor force participation rate in the Border States. By following Kelley's approach on dependency ratios, we found that children have a negative effect on the female labor force participation rate. The constant care and attention required by children seems to impede females’ participation in the labor force. However, the elderly population was found to have a positive effect on female labor force participation rate, which could suggest that the elder's involvement in the household promotes female economic activity.

Kosfeld R., Eckey H.-F. and Dreger C. (2006) Regional productivity and income convergence in the unified Germany, 1992–2000, Regional Studies 40, 755–767. This paper investigates regional convergence of labour productivity and income per capita in the period 1992–2000 for the unified Germany using spatial econometric techniques. Up to now only first-order spatial models have been employed in investigating convergence across regions and countries. An exploratory data analysis reveals, however, that the fundamental variables of the convergence equation exhibit a clear pattern of higher-order spatial dependencies. It is shown that higher-order spatial autocorrelation can be captured by the spatial ARMA model. In the spatial econometric analysis of German regional labour markets, new indicators of human capital and investment intensity are used that can resolve some ‘puzzles’ established in previous studies. Substantial differences in both β- and σ-convergence across West and East German regions are assessed. Kosfeld R., Eckey H.-F. et Dreger C. (2006) La productivité régionale et la convergence des revenus dans l'Allemagne unifiée, entre 1992 et 2000, Regional Studies 40, 755–767. A partir des techniques économétriques géographiques, cet article cherche à examiner la convergence régionale de la productivité du travail et du revenu par tête entre 1992 et l'an 2000 pour l'Allemagne unifiée. Jusqu'à présent, on n'a employé que des modèles géographiques du premier ordre pour examiner la convergence à travers les régions et les pays. Cependant, une analyse de données exploratoire laisse voir que les variables préalables de l'équation de convergence montrent une distribution des dépendances géographiques d'ordre supérieur assez évidente. On démontre que l'on peut capter l'autocorrélation géographique d'ordre supérieur en employant le modèle géographique ARMA. Dans l'analyse économétrique géographique des marchés du tavail régionaux allemands, on se sert des nouveaux indices du capital humain et du taux d'investissement qui peuvent résoudre des questions posées dans des études antérieures. On évalue d'importantes différences de la convergence β et σ à travers les régions de l'ouest et de l'est de l'Allemagne. Convergence régionale Théorie de croissance néoclassique Allemagne unifiée Modèle géographique ARMA Kosfeld R., Eckey H.-F. und Dreger C. (2006) Regionale Produktivität und Einkommenskonvergenz im wiedervereinigten Deutschland, 1992–2000, Regional Studies 40, 755–767. In dieser Arbeit wird die regionale Konvergenz der Arbeitsproduktivität und des Pro-Kopf-Einkommens im Zeitraum 1992–2000 für das vereinigte Deutschland auf der Basis von Modellen mit räumlicher Ökonometrietechniken untersucht. Bisher ist die Hypothese der Konvergenz von Regionen und Ländern allein unter Verwendung räumlicher Modelle erster Ordnung überprüft worden. Eine exploratorische Datenanalyse deckt jedoch auf, dass die fundamentalen Variablen der Konvergenzgleichung ein recht klares Muster räumlicher Abhängigkeiten höherer Ordnung aufweisen. Es lässt sich zeigen, dass die Autokorrelationen höherer Ordnung in einem räumlichen ARMA-Modell abgebildet werden können. In der räumlich-ökonometrischen Analyse deutscher Arbeitsmarktregionen machen wir von neuen Indikatoren des Humankapitals und der Investitionsintensität Gebrauch, die in der Lage sind, einige ‘Anomalien’ aufzulösen, die sich in vorangegangenen Studien ergeben haben. Substanzielle Unterschiede der β- und σ-Konvergenz zwischen den west- und ostdeutschen Regionen werden bewertet. Regionale Konvergenz Neoklassische Wachstumstheorie Vereinigtes Deutschland Räumliches ARMA-Modell Kosfeld R., Eckey H.-F. y Dreger C. (2006) Productividad regional y convergencia de ingresos en la Alemania unificada durante 1992–2000, 1992–2000, Regional Studies 40, 755–767. Mediante técnicas econométricas espaciales, en este artículo investigamos cuál fue la convergencia regional de la productividad laboral y la renta per cápita durante el periodo 1992–2000 para la Alemania unificada. Hasta ahora sólo se han empleado modelos espaciales de primer orden para investigar la convergencia en regiones y países. Sin embargo, un análisis preliminar de datos pone de manifiesto que las variables fundamentales de la ecuación de convergencia presentan un modelo claro de dependencias espaciales de orden superior. Se demuestra que puede captarse la autocorrelación espacial de orden superior mediante el modelo espacial ARMA. En los análisis econométricos espaciales de los mercados laborales regionales de Alemania utilizamos nuevos indicadores del capital humano y la intensidad de inversión porque son capaces de resolver algunos enigmas establecidos en estudios anteriores. Analizamos las considerables diferencias tanto en la convergencia β como σ en Alemania del este y el oeste. Convergencia regional Teoría neoclásica del crecimiento Alemania unificada Modelo espacial ARMA

ABSTRACTThe impact of European Union accession on regional income convergence within the Visegrad countries. Regional Studies. This paper applies regional dynamic computable general equilibrium (CGE) models to simulate the growth of regional per-capita income within the Visegrad group of countries. It shows how regional income differentials would evolve in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia if they did not join the European Union. We find that all regions would grow at a slower pace without European Union membership and that the European Union structural policies play a key role here. Finally, we prove the impact of accession on the evolution of regional income inequalities, although its magnitude differs significantly between countries.