Wealth inequality is on the rise both within countries and at the global level—it has now reached levels unseen since the first decades of the 20thcentury. While research on the causes and consequences of this phenomenon is quickly developing, few studies have explored how gender intersects with wealth inequality. Existing scholarship focuses primarily on labor-related incomes; until recently, it has dedicated comparatively little attention to the question of gender disparities in the process of wealth accumulation. This mini-conference aims to bring together scholars who study how gender may shape the reproduction/intensification of wealth concentration in different national contexts.
We are especially interested in papers addressing the following issues using a variety of methodological approaches, from ethnographic research to statistical analyses.
- Historically, legal discrimination has prevented women from accumulating wealth all over the world. Nowadays, in Western legal traditions (common law and Civil code territories) property laws are formally equal. This is not the case in countries where religious or customary traditions explicitly favor male property rights. In these different national contexts, we welcome papers that study the political and legal framing of male and female accumulation, as well as the role of legal and wealth professionals (lawyers, judges, notaries, wealth managers, bankers, …) in the extension/reduction of the gap.
- The gender wealth gap is poorly documented because surveys around the world tend to collect wealth data only at the household level. This strategy obscures gender wealth inequality located within couples, and it sometimes even leads to the assumption that couples share and equalize wealth across partners. That assumption may have been adequate fifty years ago, when most couples were married for life. Since then, however, a growing number of couples have adopted cohabitation over marriage and even those who are married can now opt for matrimonial property regimes without obligations to redistribute wealth after divorce. In this new context, how do spouses and partners manage their wealth? How do they distribute it in the event of marital breakdown or death?
- A few countries have recently begun to collect individual-level wealth data. What does this evidence say about gender wealth gaps, especially within households; how large are those gaps and how do they change across countries, depending on class, race, age, and between generations? More importantly, how can they be explained? Are gender wealth gaps entirely due to wage inequality between men and women or do other factors also play a role? For example, are receipts of intergenerational transfers unequal across gender?
How does gender influence the reproduction/intensification of wealth inequalities? While men remain wealthier than women, on average, a number of women have now joined the ranks of the national and global wealth elites. Are there differences in the strategies men and women deploy to protect their wealth, pass it on to their children, and create family dynasties?
You can register until January 10, 2020. Detailed info here
