Cognitive Skills among Adults: An Impeding Factor for Gender Convergence?

Arbeitspapier

While gender differences in labor force participation and wages have been studied extensively, gender gaps in cognitive skills among adults are not yet well understood. Using the PIAAC dataset, this paper presents novel findings on cognitive skill distributions by gender across 34 countries. Despite increasing educational equality, inequalities in numeracy skills favoring men compared to women are pervasive. These skill differences account for a sizable part of the gender wage gap. Furthermore, there are larger disadvantages for women at the top of the wage distribution, which are complemented by lower returns to skills compared to men. We also find that these numeracy-wage patterns are especially pronounced for parents and for those with the highest degree in a non-STEM field of study.

Object Details

• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Series: CESifo Working Paper ; No. 10428

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Wirtschaft ; Education and Inequality ; Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination ; Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
• Subject: gender wage gap ; skills ; numeracy ; PIAAC

Contributors, Places and Time

• Event: Geistige Schöpfung
• (who): Battisti, Michele ; Fedorets, Alexandra ; Kinne, Lavinia
• Event: Veröffentlichung
• (who): Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo)
• (where): Munich
• (when): 2023

Further information

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/279177
• Last update: 10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET