The Baby Boom, the Marriage Market and World War II
2014/10/14
研討會日期 : 2014-10-14
時間 : 14:30
主講人 : Professor Wung Lik Ng
主持人 : Professor Pei-Ju Liao
地點 : Conference Room B110
演講者簡介 : Professor Ng received his Ph.D. in Economics from Washington University in St. Louis. He is currently an Assistant Professor at National Cheng Kung University. His research fields are Macroeconomics、Quantitative Methods and Computational Economics.
演講摘要 : World War II had destroyed a lot of families in many nations. A less obvious consequence is its effect on the demographic structure. In the United States, World War II has largely distorted the matching process of the marriage market. During World War II, a significant number of men were drawn away from the marriage market. Preferring wives younger than themselves, single men returning from the battlefield after demobilization competed for young women in the marriage market. This competition resulted in a favorable marriage market for young women. By entering marriage at a young age, women had lower labor market participation, had children at a younger age and gave birth to more children. The age gap between couples increased post-war as a result. This channel also sheds light on the causes of the post-war baby boom. This paper provides empirical evidence to support this argument and highlights a model which quantifies the effects of the draft on the marriage market and fertility rates.
