Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level

While there is abundant literature demonstrating gender differences in material deprivation, thus far we know less about how to explain these differences. It is often assumed that single parent households led by women, might experience a higher risk of poverty, while in numerous countries women also...

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Main Authors: Marc Hooghe, Chloé De Grauwe, Dieter Stiers
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-06-01
Series:Heliyon
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844025018419
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author Marc Hooghe
Chloé De Grauwe
Dieter Stiers
author_facet Marc Hooghe
Chloé De Grauwe
Dieter Stiers
author_sort Marc Hooghe
collection DOAJ
description While there is abundant literature demonstrating gender differences in material deprivation, thus far we know less about how to explain these differences. It is often assumed that single parent households led by women, might experience a higher risk of poverty, while in numerous countries women also receive fewer education opportunities than men. The literature on gender disparities in material deprivation in any case suggests it is important to take the individual as an observation unit, and not the household, as routinely happens in official statistics. In this paper, we rely on a parsimonious multidimensional material deprivation scale that was included in the 7th wave of the World Values Survey, covering 56 different societies. The results of our multilevel analysis indicate that when women are the main wage earner in a household, the risk of material deprivation is substantially higher. Gender gaps in wages are associated with a much higher risk of material deprivation for women, especially if they also have a partner with a (very) low income level.
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spelling doaj-art-2eb4d2f950c544aa90d6af5accccd1b02025-08-20T03:10:18ZengElsevierHeliyon2405-84402025-06-011111e4345510.1016/j.heliyon.2025.e43455Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education levelMarc Hooghe0Chloé De Grauwe1Dieter Stiers2Corresponding author.; University of Leuven, BelgiumUniversity of Leuven, BelgiumUniversity of Leuven, BelgiumWhile there is abundant literature demonstrating gender differences in material deprivation, thus far we know less about how to explain these differences. It is often assumed that single parent households led by women, might experience a higher risk of poverty, while in numerous countries women also receive fewer education opportunities than men. The literature on gender disparities in material deprivation in any case suggests it is important to take the individual as an observation unit, and not the household, as routinely happens in official statistics. In this paper, we rely on a parsimonious multidimensional material deprivation scale that was included in the 7th wave of the World Values Survey, covering 56 different societies. The results of our multilevel analysis indicate that when women are the main wage earner in a household, the risk of material deprivation is substantially higher. Gender gaps in wages are associated with a much higher risk of material deprivation for women, especially if they also have a partner with a (very) low income level.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844025018419Material deprivationGender inequalityHousehold compositionEducation levelWorld values survey
spellingShingle Marc Hooghe
Chloé De Grauwe
Dieter Stiers
Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
Heliyon
Material deprivation
Gender inequality
Household composition
Education level
World values survey
title Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
title_full Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
title_fullStr Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
title_full_unstemmed Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
title_short Gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
title_sort gender differences in multidimensional material deprivation a comparative analysis of the role of household composition and education level
topic Material deprivation
Gender inequality
Household composition
Education level
World values survey
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844025018419
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AT dieterstiers genderdifferencesinmultidimensionalmaterialdeprivationacomparativeanalysisoftheroleofhouseholdcompositionandeducationlevel