Men's and Women's Definitions of "Good" Jobs: Similarities and Differences by Age and Across Time

Abstract

Whether and to what extent men and women hold differing preferences for particular job attributes remains the subject of debate, with a sizable number of empirical studies producing conflicting results. These conflicts may have temporal sources—historical changes in men's and women's preferences for particular job attributes, as well as changes in preferences that commonly occur over individuals' life cycle. Most previous research has neglected the effects of time on gender differences. Using data from national surveys of workers over a 22-year period, this study focuses explicitly on changes by age over time in men's and women's preferences for five key attributes of jobs—short hours, high income, meaningful work, chances for promotion, and job security. The results suggest that gender differences in preferences have been both stable and limited, although there is some evidence that the gender gap in preferences has actually widened among younger workers in recent years.