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Women’s Earnings Before and After Marital Dissolution: Evidence from Longitudinal Earnings Records Matched to Survey Data

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Abstract

This paper investigates the change in women’s earnings following marital dissolution from a longitudinal approach. Using unique data that matches the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) with Social Security longitudinal earnings records, we examine marital dissolution events occurring between 1985 and 2003. Results show significant increases in women’s labor market involvement and earnings following marital dissolutions over the past two decades. We find greater labor force involvement prior to the dissolution event among more recent divorcees; however, among those already in the labor force, the pattern of change in earnings associated with divorce has changed little over the examined period. Human capital and family characteristics were associated with the change in earnings after marital dissolution.

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Acknowledgments

The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the U.S. Social Security Administration or any agency of the federal government. The administrative data used in this paper are restricted; all users must be approved by the Social Security Administration and the Census Bureau. The data are accessible only at a secured site and subject to Disclosure review. The authors thank David Weaver, John Phillips, Susan Grad, Lionel Deang, Kimberly Burham, Patricia Martin, and Hilary Waldron for valuable comments. An early version of this article was presented at the 2009 Fall Conference of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management, Washington, DC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Office of Retirement Policy, U.S. Social Security Administration, 500 E Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 20254, USA

    Christopher R. Tamborini & Gayle L. Reznik

  2. Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics, U.S. Social Security Administration, 500 E Street, S.W., Washington, DC, 20254, USA

    Howard M. Iams

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  1. Christopher R. Tamborini
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Correspondence to Christopher R. Tamborini.

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Table 5 Description of selected independent variables used in the analysis
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Tamborini, C.R., Iams, H.M. & Reznik, G.L. Women’s Earnings Before and After Marital Dissolution: Evidence from Longitudinal Earnings Records Matched to Survey Data. J Fam Econ Iss 33, 69–82 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10834-011-9264-1

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