- Economics
- Answering Challenges to Advanced Economies
Claudia Goldin joins Steven Davis to discuss the “The Downside of Fertility,” her essay presented at the 2025 Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium. She offers an explanation for why fertility rates fell around the world as women gained greater agency in multiple domains (marriage, reproduction, education, labor markets). When women gain agency, Goldin argues that a “mismatch” between men and women in their expectations about child-rearing responsibilities leads to lower fertility. She also argues that this form of mismatch is more acute in the wake of sustained, rapid economic development, as women pursue newfound opportunities while many men cling to traditional views about marriage and child rearing.
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
Claudia Goldin is the Henry Lee Professor of Economics at Harvard University, where she also holds the Lee and Ezpeleta Professorship of Arts & Sciences. Goldin is past president of the American Economic Association, past president of the American History Association, and former director of the NBER’s program on the Development of the American Economy. She was awarded the 2023 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel “for having advanced our understanding of women’s labour market outcomes.”
An economic historian and a labor economist, Goldin's research covers a wide range of topics that include the female labor force, the gender gap in earnings, income inequality, technological change, education, and immigration. Major works include Career & Family: Women's Century-Long Journey toward Equity and The Race between Education and Technology with Lawrence F. Katz.
Steven Davis is the Thomas W. and Susan B. Ford Senior Fellow and Director of Research at the Hoover Institution and Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR). He is a research associate of the NBER, IZA research fellow, elected fellow of the Society of Labor Economists, and a consultant to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. He co-founded the Economic Policy Uncertainty project, the U.S. Survey of Working Arrangements and Attitudes, the Global Survey of Working Arrangements, the Survey of Business Uncertainty, and the Stock Market Jumps project. He also co-organizes the Asian Monetary Policy Forum, held annually in Singapore. Before joining Hoover, Davis was on the faculty at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, serving as both distinguished service professor and deputy dean of the faculty.
RELATED SOURCES
- “The Downside of Fertility” by Claudia Goldin, 2025.
- Claudia Goldin, Official Nobel Prize Interview, 2023.
- The Population Bomb by Paul Ehrlich, 1968
- The Vorkosigan Saga, a series of science fiction novels by Lois McMaster Bujold in which artificial wombs profoundly influence human reproduction and the nature of society.
ABOUT THE SERIES
Each episode of Economics, Applied, a video podcast series, features senior fellow Steven Davis in conversation with leaders and researchers about economic developments and their ramifications. The goal is to bring evidence and economic reasoning to the table, drawing lessons for individuals, organizations, and society. The podcast also aims to showcase the value of individual initiative, markets, the rule of law, and sound policy in fostering prosperity and security.
For more information, visit hoover.org/podcasts/economics-applied.
