Abstract Prior research has consistently documented a weight-related earnings penalty for females. However, there is debate concerning the existence of a similar wage penalty for men, with many studies having found no statistically significant effect. Prior research has also found a wage penalty associated with lower self-esteem. Drawing data from the 1979 cohort of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we refine the empirical relationship among self-esteem, wages, and weight. Implementing mediation models, our results suggest men face an obesity wage penalty, but the penalty is characterized through a persistent decrease in self-esteem when relatively young which leads to lower wages as adults. In contrast, the obesity wage penalty for females is not mediated through lower self-esteem and is likely the result of factors related to contemporaneous body weight.

中文翻译：

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自尊对体重和收入的中介作用

摘要 先前的研究一致记录了女性与体重相关的收入损失。然而，对于男性是否存在类似的工资惩罚存在争议，许多研究没有发现统计学上的显着影响。先前的研究还发现，工资惩罚与自尊心降低有关。从 1979 年全国青年纵向调查队列中提取数据，我们完善了自尊、工资和体重之间的经验关系。实施中介模型，我们的结果表明男性面临肥胖工资惩罚，但惩罚的特点是自尊在相对年轻时持续下降，导致成年后工资降低。相比之下，