The Mother of All Cutbacks: Couples' Expenditure Shifts after the First Birth in Japan (Single-authored)
Discussion paper:
SSRN Discussion Paper Series
http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.7123179
Abstract:
This paper examines how first childbirth reshapes the within-couple distribution of private consumption in Japan. Using panel data from the Japanese Panel Survey of Consumers and a staggered event-study design, I find that first birth triggers a marked and persistent decline in wives' private expenditure while husbands' expenditure changes much less, shifting resources within the household toward the husband. The effect is largest for women who are active on the labor market, for wives with lower pre-birth earnings, and for couples where the husband is among lower earners prior to birth. The evidence suggests that some of the most vulnerable groups face the most negative outcomes regarding a factor that is sometimes overlooked: who gets to spend how much?
She Manages the Money - He Spends It: Income Management and the Spousal Expenditure Gap in Japan (with Yue Huang)
Discussion paper:
SSRN Discussion Paper Series
http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6202042
Abstract:
This article explores the link between income management styles and expenditure behaviors within married Japanese couples. A substantial body of literature addresses the distribution of income and earning disparities within couples, yet empirical evidence on income management practices and expenditure decisions remains scarce. This study closes that gap with unique data from the Japan Panel Survey of Consumers (JPSC). We find that traditional Japanese income management arrangements, wherein husbands transfer their full income to their wives for management, are linked to women's reduced relative expenditure share. Although these women's life and marital satisfaction do not appear to be negatively affected, they report greater concerns about household finances.
Personally presented at:
2nd Mainz-Trier Workshop, Mainz University, Germany, November 2025; GRAPE Gender Gaps Conference, GRAPE Warsaw, Poland, September 2025.
Higher Education, Lower Satisfaction: Hypogamy and Traditional Norms in Japan (Single-authored)
Published:
Journal of Population Economics (Volume 39, article 37 of 2026)
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-026-01184-w
Abstract:
This paper examines whether traditional gender norms are associated with well-being penalties for the rising share of women who are more educated than their husbands (hypogamy). Using panel data from the Japanese Panel Survey of Consumers (JPSC) covering the period of 1993 to 2020, the results show that women in hypogamous marriages report lower life satisfaction than other married women. The negative association is less pronounced for more recent marriage cohorts, as well as for women with less traditional norms. Moreover, the association shows stronger negative well-being implications for hypogamous women whose intra-household role is not in line with norm-based expectations.
Personally presented at:
Global GLO JOPE Conference Bonn (Germany), Online presentation, December 2025; LISER & IAAEU Workshop on Labour and Personnel Economics, LISER Luxembourg, June 2025; German Institute for Japanese Studies (DIJ Tokyo) Study Group, Online presentation, December 2024; The 23rd International Conference of the Japan Economic Policy Association (JEPA), Online presentation, December 2024; 3rd Gender and Economics Workshop, University of Luxemburg, May 2024; RCEA International Conference in Economics, Econometrics, and Finance, Brunel University, England, May 2024; Workshop on Labour Economics, Trier University, April 2024; AASLE, Taipei, National Taiwan University, December 2023.
Trade Unions and Life Satisfaction in Germany (with Laszlo Goerke and Yue Huang)
Published:
British Journal of Industrial Relations (Volume 63, Issue 3, September 2025, pages 462-477.)
https://doi.org/10.1111/bjir.12861
Abstract:
The effects of trade union membership on wages and job satisfaction have been studied extensively. Arguably, life satisfaction serves as a more comprehensive measure of the benefits of union membership and warrants closer examination. Using all relevant waves from the German Socio-Economic Panel between 1985 and 2019, we find a negative correlation between trade union membership and life satisfaction in OLS and FE specifications. The association may arise because union members are more concerned about their job and the economic situation and less satisfied with their work. Social capital and wages also perform as channels between membership and life satisfaction. The negative correlation is more pronounced in settings in which trade unions are relatively weak.
Personally presented at:
BeWell Meeting 2023, Freie Universität Berlin, February 2023; AEA Annual Meeting (ASSA), New Orleans, USA, January 2023; 14th International German Socio-Economic Panel User Conference, DIW Berlin, June/July 2022; XXIV Applied Economics Meeting, Asociación Libre de Economia (ALdE) Palma, Spain, June 2022.