This is a Research in Undergraduate Institutions award (RUI) to study the effect of economic development on gender inequality and women's labor for participation. The study will focus on the effects of four factors on gender inequality in labor force participation and distribution, namely the effect of prior sociocultural emphasis on women's roles, the effect of a society's level of economic development, the effect of the degree of society's economic dependency on other countries, and the effect of the type of trade strategy employed by a society. A longitudinal data set containing data for 92 nations is used in panel regression analyses to identify basic patterns and test hypotheses. Most research on the relationship between women's status and economic development is based on case studies, and the results of these studies are often contradictory. This study, in contrast, will provide a systematic analysis data for many countries over a long period of time. This is likely to clarify many of the ambiguities in previous research on economic development and gender inequality.
