Salary Gender Gap May Be All in Your Head

Traditional-minded men outearn supporters of equal pay
By Katherine Thompson,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 22, 2008 12:09 PM CDT
Salary Gender Gap May Be All in Your Head
Michelle Obama, right, hugs Lilly Ledbetter, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2008, during a forum in Richmond, Va. Ledbetter led a fight for equal pay for women.   (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Not only is the gender gap in pay persistent, it affects men as well as women. Men with traditional views on a woman's place in the world earn, on average, $12,000 more per year than men who believe in egalitarian business practices, the Washington Post reports. Traditionally minded women make the least of all, according to a new study.

The study, which covers the last quarter-century, looked at men and women working similar jobs, with similar hours and lengths of tenure. Controlling for those variables dispelled some long-held conventional wisdom, suggesting that "a lot of the difference may be in men's salaries," says a study co-author. Traditional-minded men may negotiate harder for higher wages, and employers may discriminate against men who flout stereotype by holding egalitarian attitudes.
(More gender roles stories.)

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