Volume 22, Number 4 (Fall) 1987

Shackett, Joyce R. and John M. Trapani. 1987. "Earnings Differentials and Market Structure." Journal of Human Resources 22(4):518-531.

Theoretical models suggest that market structure may influence the magnitude of earnings differentials and/or discrimination observed in the marketplace. Empirical results, with regard to wage differentials and labor force participation patterns, have been mixed. Most wage differential studies have focused on males due to difficulty in obtaining reliable data for women and to the sample selection problem of women's labor force participation decisions. This paper characterizes market structure by four categories: regulated, nonprofit, government, and nonregulated industries. Within these structural categories, earnings differentials are examined for men and women, adjusting for race, occupational stratification, and sample selection bias.