1. The incarceration rates for Black men are such that “20 percent of
all black men born from 1965 through 1969 had served time in prison by
the time they reached their early 30s. By comparison, less than 3 percent
of white males born in the same time period had been in prison.”
(http://www.asanet.org/media/blacksinjail.html)
Use the marriage market analysis (and a diagram) to show/explain how
this impacts the marriage market for Black men and women.
2. Consider the article, “It’s Her Job Too.” Suppose you are an economist consulting for the lawyer for either Mr. or Mrs. Wendt (pick one). Construct an argument for your client’s settlement demands using the gains to marriage discussed in class.
3. Consider the following statement: “The earnings premium for married
men comes at the expense of their wives’ earnings.”
a) How does economic theory about specialization and the division
of labor support this statement?
b) What are some other possible reasons for the marriage premium?