Skip to main content

Evolving Patterns of Sex Segregation

  • Chapter
Sourcebook of Labor Markets

Part of the book series: Plenum Studies in Work and Industry ((SSWI))

Abstract

Men and women often work in different jobs. The differing distribution of men and women across positions within the occupational structure may be referred to as the “sex segregation” of occupations. Sex segregation remains a defining element of the American occupational structure. The composition of incumbents in a position, whether they are male or female, influences the notions men and women hold about their own opportunities. The concentration of women in low-paying, female-dominated occupations also contributes to the earnings gap between women and men.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 169.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Bergmann, Barbara. 1986. The Economic Emergence of Women. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bianchi, Suzanne M. 1995. “The Changing Economic Roles of Women and Men.” Pp.107–154 in State of the Union: America in the 1990s, Vol. 1, edited by Reynolds Farley. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bielby, William T. and James N. Baron. 1984. “A Woman’s Place Is with Other Women: Sex Segregation.” Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blau, Francine D. and Wallace E. Hendricks. 1979. “Occupational Segregation by Sex: Trends and Prospects.” Journal of Human Resources 14(2):197–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blossfeld, Hans-Peter. 1987. “Labour Market Entry and the Sexual Segregation of Careers in the Federal Republic of Germany.” American Journal of Sociology 93(1):89–118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chan, Tak Wing. 1999. “Occupational Sex Segregation over the Life Course.” American Sociological Review 64(l):86–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cotter, David A., JoAnn M. DeFiore, Joan M. Hermsen, Breda M. Kowalewski, and Reeve Vanneman. 1995. “Occupational Gender Segregation and the Earnings Gap: Changes in the 1980s.” Social Science Research 24:439–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cotter, David A., JoAnn M. DeFiore, Joan M. Hermsen, Breda M. Kowalewski, and Reeve Vanneman. 1997. “All Women Benefit: The Macro-Level Effect of Occupational Integration on Gender Earnings Inequality.” American Sociological Review 62:714–734.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edgeworth, F. Y 1922. “Equal Pay to Men and Women.” Economics Journal 32:431–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • England, Paula. 1982. “The Failure of Human Capital Theory to Explain Occupational Sex Segregation.” Journal of Human Resources 18:358–370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • England, Paula, Melissa S. Herbert, Barbara S. Kilbourne, L. L. Reid, and L. M. Medgal. 1994. “The Gendered Valuation of Occupations and Skills: Earnings in 1980 Census Occupations.” Social Forces 73(l):65–99.

    Google Scholar 

  • England, Paula and Steven McLaughlin. 1979. “Sex Segregation of Jobs and Male-Female Income Differentials.” Pp. 189–213 in Discrimination in Organizations, edited by R. Alvarez, K. Lutterman, and Associates. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedan, Betty. 1963. The Feminine Mystique. New York: W. W. Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldin, Claudia. 1990. Understanding the Gender Gap. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gornick, Janet C. and Jerry A. Jacobs. 1998. “Gender, the Welfare State, and Public Employment: a Comparative Study of Seven Industrialized Countries. American Sociological Review 63(5):688–710.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grusky David B., and Maria Charles. 1998. “The Past, Present, and Future of Sex Segregation Methodology.” Demography 35(4):497–504.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hauser, Robert M. and John H. Warren. 1997. “Socioeconomic Indexes for Occupations: A Review, Update and Critique.” Sociological Methodology 27:177–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Jerry A. 1989a. “Long Term Trends in Occupational Segregation by Sex.” American Journal of Sociology

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Jerry A. 1989b. Revolving Doors: Sex Segregation and Women’s Careers. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Jerry A. 1993. “Theoretical and Measurement Issues in the Study of Sex Segregation in the Workplace.” European Sociological Review 9(3):325–330.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Jerry A. 1995. “Gender and Academic Specialties: Trends among Recipients of College Degrees during the 1980s.” Sociology of Education 68(2):81–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Jerry A. and Ronnie Steinberg. 1990. “Compensating Differentials and the Male-Female Wage Gap: Evidence from the New York State Comparable Worth Study.” Social Forces 69(2):439–468.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, Sheila C. 1995. “Changing Patterns of Sex Segregation Occupations throughout the Life-Course.” European Sociological Review 11(2):157–171.

    Google Scholar 

  • Levine, Phillip B. and David J. Zimmerman. 1995. “A Comparison of the Sex-Type of Occupational Aspirations and Subsequent Achievement.” Work and Occupations 22(l):73–84.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lieberson, Stanley. 1980. A Piece of the Pie. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Marini, Margaret M. and Mary C. Brinton. 1984. “Sex Typing in Occupational Socialization.” Pp. 192–232 in Sex Segregation in the Workplace: Trends, Explanations, Remedies, edited by Barbara Reskin. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Massey, Douglas S. and Nancy A. Denton. 1989. “The Dimensions of Residential Segregation.” Social Forces 67(2):281–315.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parcel, Toby. 1989. “Comparable Worth, Occupational Labor Markets, and Occupational Earnings: Results from the 1980 Census.” Pp. 134–152 in Pay Equity: Empirical Inquiries, edited by Robert T. Michael, Heidi I. Hartmann, and Brigid O’Farrell. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Petersen, Trond and Laurie A. Morgan. 1995. “Separate and Unequal: Occupation Establishment Sex Segregation and the Gender Wage Gap.” American Journal of Sociology 101(2):329–365.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Polachek, Solomon. 1979. “Occupational Segregation among Women: Theory, Evidence, and a Prognosis.” Pp. 137–157 in Women in the Labor Market, edited by Cynthia B. Lloyd, Emily S. Andrews, and Curtis L. Gilroy New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reskin, Barbara F. and Patricia A. Roos. 1990. Job Queues, Gender Queues: Explaining Women’s Inroads into Male Occupations. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rosenfeld, Rachel A. and Kenneth I. Spenner. 1995. “Occupational Sex Segregation and Women’s Early Career Job Shifts.” Pp. 231–258 in Gender Inequality at Work, edited by Jerry A. Jacobs. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ross, Catharine E. and John Mirowsky. 1996. “Economic and Interpersonal Work Rewards: Subjective Utilities of Men’s and Women’s Compensation.” Social Forces 75(l):223–246.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scharf, Lois. 1980. To Work and to Wed: Female Employment, Feminism and the Great Depression. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sorensen, Elaine. 1989. “Measuring the Effect of Occupational Sex and Race Composition on Earnings.” Pp. 49–69 in Pay Equity: Empirical Inquiries, edited by Robert T. Michael, Heidi I. Hartmann, and Brigid O’Farrell. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, Ronnie J. 1990. “The Social Construction of Skill: Gender, Power and Comparable Worth.” Work and Occupations 17(4):449–482.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tomaskovic-Devey, Donald. 1995. “Sex Composition and Gendered Earnings Inequality: A Comparison of Job and Occupational Models.” Pp. 23–56 in Gender Inequality at Work, edited by Jerry A. Jacobs. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Warren, John R., Jennifer T. Sheridan, and Robert M. Hauser. 1998. “Choosing a Measure of Occupational Standing: How Useful Are Composite Measures in Analyses of Gender Inequality in Occupational Attainment?” Sociological Methods and Research 27(l):3–76.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Watts M. 1998. “Occupational Gender Segregation: Index Measurement and Econometric Modeling.” Demography 35(4):489–496.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weeden, Kim A. 1998. “Revisiting Occupational Sex Segregation in the United States, 1910–1990: Results form a Log-Linear approach.” Demography 35(4):448–475.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2001 Springer-Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Jacobs, J.A. (2001). Evolving Patterns of Sex Segregation. In: Berg, I., Kalleberg, A.L. (eds) Sourcebook of Labor Markets. Plenum Studies in Work and Industry. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1225-7_21

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-1225-7_21

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-5449-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-1225-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics