From pink collar to lab coat: cultural persistence and diffusion of socialist gender norms

We study vertical transmission and societal diffusion of gender norms using the large immigration wave from the former Soviet Union (FSU) to Israel in the early 1990’s. Tracking the educational choices of an entire cohort, born in 1988–89, we compare gender gaps among immigrants from the FSU versus natives and immigrants from other countries. We find smaller gender gaps among FSU immigrants in both traditionally male-dominated STEM fields and female-dominated pink collar jobs, e.g., education and social work. These patterns are largely driven by the behavior of FSU women and are not explained by early achievement levels or comparative advantage. Leveraging variation in the concentration of FSU immigrants across middle schools, we find that among natives, gender gaps narrow with the exposure to FSU immigrants, reflecting a shift in the choice patterns of native women towards STEM and away from pink collar fields.