Institutional quality and women’s employment: A global analysis of economic, demographic and urban influences

Prakash, Arjun and Yadav, Inder Sekhar (2026) Institutional quality and women’s employment: A global analysis of economic, demographic and urban influences. Comparative Economic Studies, 68 (1). ISSN 0888-7233

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Abstract

This study examines how institutional quality, demographic pressures and structural economic factors shape female employment across 155 countries over the period 2002–2022. The analysis highlights the central role of women’s political representation and governance effectiveness in influencing female employment, while revealing substantial heterogeneity across income groups. Women’s political representation is consistently associated with higher female employment, whereas governance effectiveness supports women’s employment primarily in high-income economies and shows weaker or adverse effects in upper-middle-income countries. Demographic factors remain critical: higher young-age dependency reduces female employment, while elderly dependency is positively associated with women’s participation. Urbanisation and service-sector expansion do not consistently enhance female employment, with service-sector expansion often associated with lower female employment in lower-income contexts. Overall, the findings underscore that institutional quality and economic growth alone are insufficient to raise women’s employment without complementary policies that address care burdens, job quality and labour market accessibility.

Item Type:	Article
Authors:	Prakash, Arjun and Yadav, Inder Sekhar
Document Language:	Language English
Subjects:	Social sciences > Political Science Social sciences > Economics > Labor economics Social sciences > Economics > Production > Economic policy, economic development, economic growth
Divisions:	Azim Premji University - Bengaluru > School of Arts and Sciences
Full Text Status:	None
URI:	http://publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/id/eprint/7562
Publisher URL:	https://doi.org/10.1057/s41294-026-00279-3

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