The Free-Lunch Father Problem at Jackson Hole
Claudia Goldin, the Harvard economist who won the 2023 Nobel, opened the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s Jackson Hole symposium on Friday with a paper explaining low fertility in advanced economies. Her story is simple: as women’s education and career opportunities expanded, they delayed childbearing and had fewer children. Fertility can recover, she argues, only if more men become “dependable” caregivers—that is, do more unpaid labor at home—or if governments substitute with subsidized childcare and paid leave.
It’s a compelling headline: fertility depends on whether men do their share of housework. The problem is that her model builds that conclusion in by construction. It precisely prices women’s opportunity cost and leaves the cost for men
Join the conversation!
Please share your thoughts about this article below. We value your opinions, and would love to see you add to the discussion!