Economic Penalties and Rewards of Family Formation, Gender and Education in the Low-income Sector in Germany

To authenticate to the full-text of this article, please visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-4446.2008.01220.x Byline: Silke Aisenbrey (1) Keywords: Low-income sector; education; household characteristics; welfare state; gender; cumulative advantages Abstract: Abstract This article examines the differential effects of changes in family formations on men's and women's economic vulnerability. The motivating question is whether investments in education provide sufficient resources to escape the risk of poverty in the low-income sector or if changes in household characteristics are more important determinants of one's living standard. Changes in household characteristics are defined in terms of partners' entry into and exit from households and partners' different labour market profiles. The analysis focuses on households in the low-income sector in Germany, a population that is at high risk of poverty in a social welfare state that is expected to mitigate the effects of changes in family formation independent of gender. Findings from panel regression analysis demonstrate that women, in contrast to men, benefit economically as much as or more from investing in traditional family formations than in their own labour market position. This is especially the case for women with lower levels of education. Author Affiliation: (1)Yeshiva University, New York Article History: (Date accepted: October 2008) Article note: email: silke.aisenbrey@yu.edu