Relative Occupational Attainments of Spouses and Later Changes in Marriage and Wife's Work Experience

Using the older cohort of women in the National Longitudinal Survey, this paper analyzes whether the relative attainments of spouses at one point in time are associated with divorce, leaving the labor force, moving to a lower status job and/or moving to a traditional jobone sex-typed female-at a later time. Independent variables included wife's occupational status, husband's occupational status, the interaction between the two (relative occupational status), and whether wife is employed in a traditional or nontraditional job. The strongest finding is the importance of wife's employment in a nontraditional job (sex-typed male) as a predictor of change. Women in nontraditional jobs were more likely to become divorced, to leave the labor force, or to move to a lower status position than were women in traditional positions. In addition, many women in nontraditional jobs shifted to traditional jobs. The relative attainment of spouses further contributes to the probability of these changes, but the effects are not large.