Efficiency versus gender roles and stereotypes: an experiment in domestic production
通过实验比较夫妻在性别化与中性家务上的时间分配，发现女性过度专攻“女性任务”、男性过度专攻“男性任务”，偏离了比较优势决定的效率，揭示性别角色和刻板印象的影响。
Abstract Empirical studies cast doubt on the efficiency assumption made in standard economic models of household behavior. In couples, the allocation of time between activities remains highly differentiated by gender. In this paper we examine whether couples deviate from efficiency in household production, using an experimental design. We compare the allocation of gendered vs. gender-neutral domestic tasks. Our results show that women in the household overspecialize in “feminine tasks” and men in “masculine tasks” compared to what their comparative advantage would require, hence revealing the influence of gender roles and stereotypes on the couples’ behavior.