Marriage markets as explanation for why heavier people work more hours

Abstract

Is BMI related to hours of work through marriage market mechanisms? We empirically explore this issue using data from the NLSY79 and NLSY97 and a number of estimation strategies (including OLS, IV, and sibling FE). Our IV estimates (with same-sex sibling's BMI as an instrument and a large set of controls including wage) suggest that a one-unit increase in BMI leads to an almost 2% increase in White married women's hours of work. However, BMI is not associated with hours of work of married men. We also find that a one-unit increase in BMI leads to a 1.4% increase in White single women's hours of work, suggesting that single women may expect future in-marriage transfers that vary by body weight. We show that the positive association between BMI and hours of work of White single women increases with self-assessed probability of future marriage and varies with expected cumulative spousal income. Comparisons between the association between BMI and hours of work for White and Black married women suggest a possible racial gap in intra-marriage transfers from husbands to wives.

Life satisfaction and body mass index: estimating the monetary value of achieving optimal body weight

“…Swiss women have the lowest average BMI (23.7) in Europe, while men’s average BMI (26.7) lies close to the average BMI for European men (WHO, 2021 ), suggesting that the norm in Switzerland is for women being within the normal weight category while it is more acceptable for men to be above. BMI has been shown to be related to the number of work hours through marriage and labor market mechanisms (Cawley, 2015 , Grossbard & Mukhopadhyay, 2017 ). Some studies have shown that hours of work are positively associated with body weight for women, i.e., that high-BMI women work more hours (Cawley, 2015 , Caliendo, & Gehrsitz, 2016 , Grossbard & Mukhopadhyay, 2017 ).…”

“…BMI has been shown to be related to the number of work hours through marriage and labor market mechanisms (Cawley, 2015 , Grossbard & Mukhopadhyay, 2017 ). Some studies have shown that hours of work are positively associated with body weight for women, i.e., that high-BMI women work more hours (Cawley, 2015 , Caliendo, & Gehrsitz, 2016 , Grossbard & Mukhopadhyay, 2017 ). In the light of traditional gender values, married women have shown to be more likely than married men to receive in-marriage income transfers as women are rewarded for thinness while higher body weight reduces their bargaining power in marriage, leading to lower access to their spouse’s income (Oreffice & Quintana-Domeque, 2012 ).…”

“…In the light of traditional gender values, married women have shown to be more likely than married men to receive in-marriage income transfers as women are rewarded for thinness while higher body weight reduces their bargaining power in marriage, leading to lower access to their spouse’s income (Oreffice & Quintana-Domeque, 2012 ). However, BMI has been shown to be unrelated to work hours for married men (Caliendo, & Gehrsitz, 2016 , Grossbard & Mukhopadhyay, 2017 ). These findings are consistent with traditional gender roles, and although we find evidence of positive sorting in spouses’ BMI, both men and women place greater value on women not being above their optimal BMI and men not under their optimal BMI.…”