Labor market differentials estimated with researcher-inferred and self-identified sexual orientation

The impact of the common practice of inferring sexual orientation via cohabitation status on estimated labor market differentials for sexual minorities is understudied. Using the 2013–2018 National Health Interview Survey, I show that inferring sexual orientation via cohabitation status leads to sim...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Economics letters 2021-08, Vol.205, p.109959, Article 109959
Main Author: Martell, Michael E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bisexuality
Cohabitation
Discrimination
Gays & lesbians
Heterosexuality
Homosexuality
Households
Labor market
Labor market outcomes
Lesbianism
Masks
Minority groups
Polls & surveys
Same-sex households
Sex crimes
Sexual behavior
Sexual harassment
Sexual orientation
Studies
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Summary:The impact of the common practice of inferring sexual orientation via cohabitation status on estimated labor market differentials for sexual minorities is understudied. Using the 2013–2018 National Health Interview Survey, I show that inferring sexual orientation via cohabitation status leads to similar estimated differentials for gay men but inflates outcomes for lesbian women. Estimates for all bisexual individuals are biased upwards, because bisexual individuals are less likely to cohabit and comprise less than ten percent of the same-sex cohabiting sample. Estimates of outcomes for sexual minority members of same-sex households are largely unaffected by the sample contamination resulting from potentially erroneous inclusion of heterosexual individuals. However, cohabitation based researcher inference of sexual orientation masks important heterogeneity in self-identified sexual orientation based labor market differentials. Results highlight the need for inclusion of sexual orientation identity on more large scale surveys. •Researchers often infer sexual orientation identity via same-sex cohabitation.•Same-sex households contain a non-trivial number of heterosexual individuals.•Contamination bias does not affect outcomes for cohabiting sexual minorities.•Inferring identity has little impact on estimated labor market outcomes for gay men.•Inferring identity inflates estimated outcomes for lesbian and bisexual individuals.
ISSN:0165-1765
1873-7374
DOI:10.1016/j.econlet.2021.109959