http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
xiii,137 leaves : illustrations ; 28 cm.
As self-employment increases as a percentage of the work
force, so grows the interest in understanding the
characteristics and labor market behavior of these workers.
This study investigates the historical trends in the
composition of the self-employed, the determinants of an
individual's choice to enter self-employment, and examines
state to state variations in self-employment rates. Its
primary findings are that variations in the self-employment
rate among men are closely associated with changes in the
demographic and industrial composition of the male work
force. Among women, self-employment has grown consistently
over the last fifteen years and the growth is occurring
within groups. The source of the growth in the female self-
employment rate is therefore more difficult to pinpoint than
is the source of the variations in the rate among men, but
analysis at the individual level indicates the female self-
employment rate is closely tied to family composition. At
the individual level, a worker's decision to enter self-
employment is a function of relative wages in the wage and
salary and self-employment sectors and the worker's
preferences of leisure. A team forming model is proposed
that shows that workers who prefer either low or high hours
are least likely to be chosen as teammates and are therefore
most likely to enter self-employment. The empirical evidence
is consistent with the intuition of the model. Self-
employment rates are highest among workers who report either
low or high hours even after controlling for observable labor
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