TY - JOUR
T1 - On the emergence of toyboys
T2 - The timing of marriage with aging and uncertain careers
AU - Coles, Melvyn G.
AU - Francesconi, Marco
PY - 2011/8
Y1 - 2011/8
N2 - We explore how gender bias in career opportunities affects matching in a marriage market with search frictions and where an individual's fitness decays with age. We document a "being left on the shelf" effect where young singles, who find the marriage market rapidly thins with age, rush into early partnership. Singles with stronger career opportunities, however, have a greater option value to defer marriage. More equal career opportunities for women (captured by greater schooling and better occupations) potentially explain the recent emergence of toyboy unions, in which the woman is at least 5 years older than her partner.
AB - We explore how gender bias in career opportunities affects matching in a marriage market with search frictions and where an individual's fitness decays with age. We document a "being left on the shelf" effect where young singles, who find the marriage market rapidly thins with age, rush into early partnership. Singles with stronger career opportunities, however, have a greater option value to defer marriage. More equal career opportunities for women (captured by greater schooling and better occupations) potentially explain the recent emergence of toyboy unions, in which the woman is at least 5 years older than her partner.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=80052255763&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1111/j.1468-2354.2011.00651.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1468-2354.2011.00651.x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:80052255763
SN - 0020-6598
VL - 52
SP - 825
EP - 853
JO - International Economic Review
JF - International Economic Review
IS - 3
ER -