An Analysis of Family Structure and Labor Supply Decisions

Abstract

Family dynamics are changing over the time and urbanization is one of the important driving forces behind this change. In Pakistan, extended family structure has been more prevalent in older decades but with changing time the family structure in Pakistan is undergoing a social change. The main objective of the study is to analyze the effect of family structure on labor force participation decisions of male and female family members that are in their working-age. The data used in this study is cross-sectional data from Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES) for 2015-16. A binary logistic regression is used to evaluate labor force participation decisions in urban households. The results indicate that male and female that are in their working-age are less likely to join labor force if they live in extended household structure as compared to nuclear household structure. Whereas in case of multiple household structure, female labor force participation increases while that of males reduces.