Essays in family macroeconomics

Berresheim, Ursula

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URN:	urn:nbn:de:bsz:180-madoc-723754
Document Type:	Doctoral dissertation
Year of publication:	2026
Place of publication:	Mannheim
University:	Universität Mannheim
Evaluator:	Tertilt, Michèle
Date of oral examination:	2026
Publication language:	English
Institution:	School of Law and Economics > Makro- u. Entwicklungsökonomie (Tertilt 2010-)
License:	Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Subject:	330 Economics
Keywords (English):	work from home , occupational sorting , general equilibrium , life-cycle model , time allocation , productivity penalties , intra-household decisions , divorce , subjective expectations , human capital , savings , gender equality , taxation
Abstract:	This dissertation examines how constraints and expectations shape women's and couples' economic outcomes through two quantitative lifecycle models. Chapter 1 analyzes the macroeconomic effects of expanded work-from-home (WfH) opportunities using a general-equilibrium overlapping-generations model of married couples' time allocation and occupational choice. Findings show that WfH expansion raises mothers' earnings growth between ages 25–40 by 7.2 percentage points, though effects vary by occupation: women in abstract jobs face productivity penalties, while routine workers benefit from reduced commuting. Aggregate gender gaps narrow, welfare rises 11.1 percent, and output increases 0.5 percent, despite short-run earnings losses. Chapter 2, joint with David Koll, incorporates overoptimistic divorce expectations into a household lifecycle model. Although 35–40 percent of U.S. marriages end in divorce, individuals expect only 15 percent. This bias generates greater intra-household specialization and lower savings, leaving divorced lower-wage spouses with 30 percent fewer assets, helping explain divorced mothers' poverty rates.