EFFECTS OF OCCUPATIONAL-STATUS DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SPOUSES ON THE WIFES LABOR-FORCE PARTICIPATION AND OCCUPATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT - FINDINGS FROM 12 EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Effects of occupational status differences between spouses on the wife 's employment and on her occupational achievement are studied for the countries of the European Union. The results show a tendency towards s imilarity in occupational status within marriages, Labor force partici pation of a wife is highest when her potential occupational status equ als her husband's occupational status. Furthermore, the husband's occu pation produces both a ceiling effect and a facilitating effect on the wife's occupational achievement. The strength of these effects differ s somewhat between the countries. For a wife's participation in the la bor force, these differences are related to the country try's dominant religion.