Beauty and the Labor Market: An Incomplete Analysis

Paper Summary:

The paper uses Hamermesh and Biddle's analysis "Beauty and the Labor Market" in this discussion of discrimination in the labor market. The paper looks at whether there is a relationship between beauty and levels of earnings as determined by Hamermesh and Biddle. The paper comments on the findings of this 1994 analysis and also examines why it is incomplete.

From the Paper:

"Hamermesh and Biddle's 1994 analysis of the relationship between beauty and economics, entitled "Beauty and the Labor Market," hypothesized that there were indeed correlations between levels of attractiveness and wage-earnings. Through their analysis of three surveys (one Canadian [1981], two American [1977, 1971]), the authors determined that wage premiums (higher wages) were associated with advanced levels of attractiveness, and that wage penalties (lower wages) were linked to reduced ranks of beauty. One noteworthy finding of the study was that "men's looks may have slightly larger effects on their earnings than do women's" (Hamermesh and Biddle 1187)."

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