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  5. The Family Origin of the Math Gender Gap Is a White Affluent Phenomenon

AEA Papers and Proceedings

ISSN 2574-0768 (Print) | ISSN 2574-0776 (Online)

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The Family Origin of the Math Gender Gap Is a White Affluent Phenomenon

  • Gaia Dossi
  • David Figlio
  • Paola Giuliano
  • Paola Sapienza
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 111, May 2021
(pp. 179–83)
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Abstract

Previous research has shown that norms around the role of women in society could help explain the gender gap in mathematics and that these norms could be transmitted within the family. Using data from the Florida Department of Education combined with birth certificates, we uncover important heterogeneity in the transmission of gender biases within the family. We find that gender role norms can explain the lower performance of girls in mathematics only in relatively affluent White families, whereas they do not apparently matter for the performance of Black girls.

Citation

Dossi, Gaia, David Figlio, Paola Giuliano, and Paola Sapienza. 2021. "The Family Origin of the Math Gender Gap Is a White Affluent Phenomenon." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 111: 179–83. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20211124

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
  • J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
  • Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification
  • J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination