Twentieth International Conference on Technology, Knowledge, and Society

Abstract

This research investigates the gender-based wage gap in information technology workers based on the theoretical framework of human capital theory. We adopt both the neoclassical view and the skill weighted view as our theoretical framework. The neoclassical view considers differences in human capital endowments (education and experience) possessed by females and males as the key variable of explaining the wage differentials. The skill weighted view takes into account the differences in skills possessed by both genders. The research is based on a large scale voluntary online survey, focusing on salary, skills, and demographic information of IT workers. We find that after accounting for differentials in both human capital and skills, the wage gap still persists, although the introduction of skill variables narrows the wage inequality. In addition, we find that age discrimination is more severe against females than males. We suggest future research directions for furthering the studies of the persistent wage gaps.