Abstract
This doctoral thesis consists of four self-contained essays.
Chapter 1 investigates the determinants of occupational choices of young Ugandans and how they translate into occupational gender segregation, emphasizing the role of information constraints, expectations and preferences.
Chapter 2 examines the link between an adverse economic shock and intimate partner violence (IPV). We leverage a natural experiment in Uganda to estimate the causal impact of a husband’s job loss on the likelihood of a woman experiencing physical and emotional violence.
Chapter 3 introduces a theoretical framework that examines how distorted beliefs can result in persistent social norms. We explore the consequences that some policy prescriptions have on norms’ persistence, and we apply this framework to the case of chhaupadi, a menstrual-related practice in Nepal.
Chapter 4 tests the hypothesis that colonization, and particularly the British colonial regime, promoted homophobic views in Sub-Saharan Africa by imposing and enforcing their laws and norms.