Over the last decades, women have increasingly entered traditionally male-dominated professions such as medicine and law. However, the reverse has not happened: men remain heavily underrepresented in many female-dominated occupations, often called “pink-collar jobs”.
This imbalance matters not only for gender equality, but also for the economy more broadly. Occupational segregation can contribute to labor shortages, inefficient matching between workers and jobs, and persistent gender pay gaps. As populations age and demand for care-related professions increases, understanding why men avoid these occupations becomes increasingly important.
The study investigates whether deeply rooted gender norms about which occupations are considered “appropriate” for men and women help explain this pattern. Yet, studying the effects of norms is challenging because culture is often closely intertwined with economic conditions and institutions. To address this challenge, the study analyzes the occupational choices of second-generation immigrants. The idea is to compare people who live in the same country - for example Sweden - and therefore face the same labor market conditions, wages, and institutions, but who differ in the gender norms they may have inherited from their parents’ country of origin. The study uses data from across Europe and Swedish administrative records to examine whether men are less likely to work in occupations that are more female dominated in their ancestral country. In addition, the study uses a survey experiment to directly measure how people perceive men and women working in occupations that are usually associated with the opposite gender.
Men in female-dominated occupations are viewed more negatively than women in the same positions.
The results show a consistent pattern for men: men are significantly less likely to work in occupations that are more female dominated in their country of origin, suggesting that inherited gender norms continue to shape occupational choices. Women, in contrast, appear much less constrained by these norms, especially in more gender-equal environments such as Sweden. The survey experiment helps explain these findings. Men in female-dominated occupations are viewed more negatively than women in the same positions. People perceive them as less suited for the job and as less socially desirable, and they also believe that others in society share these views. Together, the findings suggest that persistent social stigma remains an important barrier preventing more men from entering pink-collar occupations.
These findings have important policy implications. Many efforts to reduce occupational segregation focus on encouraging girls and women to enter male-dominated fields such as science and engineering. The study suggests that reducing segregation further may also require addressing the social stigma men face when entering care-oriented and female-dominated occupations. Challenging stereotypes about masculinity and occupational fit may therefore be an important step toward creating more balanced labor markets.
About the author
Natalie Irmert is a PhD Candidate in Economics at Lund University School of Economics and Management. Natalie’s primary research interests are in Labor Economics, Gender Economics and Economics of Education.
This research was undertaken as part of the author’s PhD studies at the Department of Economics at Lund University School of Economics and Management. Read more about the dissertation:
The Role of Teachers, Schools, and Culture in Education and Labor Market Outcomes
