Abstract: The feminisation U describes the tendency of female labour force participation (FLFP) to first decline and then rise in the process of development. Long considered to be a ‘stylised fact’, the feminisation U is actually supported by mixed evidence. This research identifies an important source of heterogeneity in the shape of the feminisation U across countries – the cultural norms and values engendered by the adoption of the plough in pre-industrial times. In line with existing theoretical accounts of the U-curve, which suggest that initial conditions are critical, we find evidence that a tradition of plough use intensifies the U-shaped path of FLFP. Based on a dynamic panel-data estimator, we find evidence of a significantly U-shaped path of FLFP in countries with a history of ancestral plough use, but no such relationship in ‘non-plough countries’. We also explore, and rule out, other potential drivers of heterogeneity (e.g. the timing of the Neolithic revolution), and investigate empirically the causal mechanisms that generate the feminisation U in plough countries. Our results address the empirical controversy surrounding the feminisation U, while shedding new light on the long-run effects of plough adoption.
Elodie Douarin a Development Economist and is currently working on the causes and consequences of conflict, aspects of political participation, migration and subjective wellbeing.
Selected publications:
* Amini, Chiara, and Elodie Douarin. "Corruption and Life Satisfaction in Transition: Is Corruption a Social Norm in Eastern Europe?." Social Indicators Research (2020).
* Douarin, Elodie, and Tomasz Mickiewicz. Economics of institutional change: Central and Eastern Europe revisited. Springer, 2017.
* Bruno, Randolph Luca, Elodie Douarin, Julia Korosteleva, and Slavo Radosevic. "Technology choices and growth: testing new structural economics in transition economies." Journal of Economic Policy Reform 18, no. 2 (2015): 131-152.