How Changes in Individual Economic Circumstances Shape Men’s Attitudes toward Women’s Equality in the Labor Market

• In Event: Gender and Class: Privilege and Precarity

Abstract

How do changes in people’s financial situations shape their attitudes toward equality between men and women, particularly in the labor market? Research has examined correlations between gender attitudes and individual sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., education, income), but relatively little attention has been paid to the role of changing economic circumstances. Economic shifts may be especially important in shaping attitudes among men, for whom economic status and a breadwinning role hold greater importance. In this paper, I examine the role of the role of changes in men’s economic circumstances—namely, perceived financial decline—using both cross-sectional and panel data. The results show that men may in fact become more supportive of gender equality in the labor market under worsening financial conditions. More broadly, the findings suggest that gender attitudes reflect changes in material circumstances that alter the incentives for egalitarian gender arrangements.

Author

• Katharine (Kate) Khanna, University of Maryland-College Park