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Gender Differences in the Choice of Major: The Importance of Female Role Models

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

Published
<mark>Journal publication date</mark>1/07/2020
<mark>Journal</mark>American Economic Journal: Applied Economics
Issue number3
Volume12
Number of pages29
Pages (from-to)226-254
Publication StatusPublished
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

We conducted a field experiment aimed at increasing the percentage of women majoring in economics. We exposed students enrolled in introductory classes to successful and charismatic women who majored in economics at the same university. The intervention significantly impacted female students’ enrolment in further economics classes, increasing their likelihood to major in economics by 8 percentage points. This is a large effect, given that only 9 percent of women were majoring in economics at baseline. Since the impacted women were previously planning to major in lower-earning fields, our low-cost intervention may have a positive effect on their future incomes.