Volume 22 - Article 19 | Pages 549–578  

Women´s wages and childbearing decisions: Evidence from Italy

By Concetta Rondinelli, Arnstein Aassve, Francesco Billari

This article is part of the Special Collection 12 „Economic uncertainty and family dynamics in Europe“

Abstract

During the early 1990s, Italy became one of the first countries to reach lowest-low fertility. This was also a period in which women´s education and labour force participation increased. We analyze the role of women´s (potential) wages on their fertility decisions by making use of two different surveys. This enables us to apply discrete-time duration models. For first births, we find evidence of non-proportional hazards and of some "recuperation" effects; for second and third births, instead, wage exhibits small intensity although there is a clear division between Northern and Southern Italian regions.

Author’s Affiliation

• Concetta Rondinelli - Bank of Italy, Italy EMAIL
• Arnstein Aassve - Università Bocconi, Italy EMAIL
• Francesco Billari - Università Bocconi, Italy EMAIL

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