Beliefs About Maternal Labor Supply

Abstract

We provide representative evidence on the perceived returns to maternal labor supply. A mother's decision to work is perceived to have sizable impacts on child skills, family outcomes, and the mother's future labor market outcomes. Beliefs about the impact of additional household income can account for some, but not all, of the perceived positive effects. We further document labor supply intentions under different policy scenarios related to childcare availability and quality, two factors that are perceived as important. Finally, we show that perceived returns are predictive of labor supply intentions, over and above what can be explained by other factors.