No Risk, No Reward? Gender Differences in Illegal Compensating Wage Differentials

• In Event: Old Ideas, New Puzzles: Advancing Offender Decision Making

Abstract

The current study contributes to the emergent literature on illicit rewards and offender decision making by drawing on the concept of compensating wage differentials to capture gender differences in the willingness to accept risk of arrest. Compensating wage differentials is a well-known term in labor economics that proposes wages compensate for undesirable characteristics such as unpleasantness and risk associated with a particular job. We analyze data from two samples: 1) a sample of 395 male and 116 female inmates in one of three reentry facilities in a Mid-Atlantic state and 2) a sample of 71 male and 85 female non-offenders. Results show that females require a higher illegal wage rate than males to compensate for the same risk of arrest. However, the difference is driven by female non-offenders. When comparing female offenders to male offenders, females require less compensation than males for the same risk of arrest. Theoretical implications and avenues for future inquiry are discussed.

Authors

• Holly Nguyen, Pennsylvania State University

• Brandy R. Parker, The Pennsylvania State University