Contested Hegemony: Fatherhood Wage Effects across Two U.S. Birth Cohorts

• In Event: 396 - Regular Session. Fatherhood, Parental Leave and Gender Inequality

Abstract

Hegemonic masculinity is argued to account for net fatherhood wage premiums, but the ideal is constantly contested. We argue the socio-economic changes since the 1960s reduced net premiums and group variations therein across two birth cohorts of men drawn from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. Fixed-effects models reveal that fathers’ net premium decreased across cohorts, whereas the structure of fathers’ occupational effects shifted. Consistent with color-blind racism, more of white fathers’ additional premium in the younger cohort is accounted for by non-racial variables. We conclude that the relative economic advantage of the hegemonic ideal can change over time.

Authors

• Lynn Prince Cooke, University of Bath

• Irene Boeckmann, University of Toronto