GEOGRAPHICAL AND GENDER DIFFERENCES IN LABOR-FORCE PARTICIPATION - ISTHERE AN APPALACHIAN EFFECT

A recent article in this journal concluded that West Virginia's low la bor force participation rates cannot be attributed to economic, demogr aphic, or institutional factors and that they probably result from an Appalachian culture which has a strong preference for non-market activ ities. This article reviews the diverse social science literature on d eterminants of labor force participation and then takes a closer look at Appalachian participation. It presents and uses a more comprehensiv e model, focuses on the county level instead of the state, and examine s variations within Appalachia and over time. The main findings are th at the Appalachian labor force gap is either non-existent or very smal l and that there is no statistical evidence of a unique or pervasive A ppalachian cultural effect. Appalachian labor force behavior appears t o be quite average given the conditions faced by Appalachians.