SOCI 415 Lecture 5: Mate Selection Lecture
Document Summary
Participants in the marriage market prefer to marry if, and only their utility from marriage exceeds their utility from remaining single. Becker maintains that he major gain to marriage lies in the mutual dependence of spouses, arising out of their specialized functions - the women in domestic production (and reproduction), the man in market work. Marriage then involves trading the fruits of these different skills. Specialize in area where they have comparative advantage. Women in reproduction, men in productive work -> can maximize utility of marriage. Needs changes as women get more involved in workplace. Not desirable to get married if there are different options. Women"s rising employment, women become less specialized and more economically independent. If women get more economically independent from work, they won"t gain anything from marriage, so they will retreat. The "independent hypothesis" - women"s increasing market work has discouraged marriage formation and encouraged marriage instability. Key words: specialization, independent, non-marriage and marital instability.
