Joint Utility or Sub-optimal Outcomes? Household Income Development of Same-Sex and Different-Sex Couples Transitioning to Parenthood in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden

Unequal divisions of paid work and care among new parents contribute to increasing inequalities. One explanation for this is joint utility maximization the benefits partners (temporarily) specializing in care. This paper examines (dis)advantages compared dividing tasks more equally by studying whether differences specialization between same-sex different-sex couples lead household earnings after entering parenthood. Using register data from Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden examining first-time parents, we show that female have a equal within-couple income development during transition parenthood than do. However, find no (including or excluding social transfers) two types couples. Although task division may be preferred an individual perspective, our results evidence “best strategy” when it comes maximizing income.