Economic freedom and gender

This chapter explores the relationship between economic freedom and gender in an attempt to address the question: do markets oppress women or help them flourish? It first defines economic freedom and clarifies the measure of economic freedom being utilized in this analysis. Next, it presents the theoretical arguments about the benefits that markets provide for women that proponents of economic freedom have made since the Enlightenment. It then explores several feminist critiques of free markets and highlights the ways in which markets reinforce structures that subjugate women. The chapter then examines some empirical evidence to help shed light on this debate and compares those results with the related empirical evidence in the economics literature. It concludes with a discussion of some relevant policy questions and potential directions for additional research.

Find the full chapter here.