We use a simple structural matching model with unobserved heterogeneity to produce counterfactual marriage patterns, and thus quantify the contribution of changes in marital patterns in rising income inequality. We propose an algorithm that allows us to fix the degree of assortative mating without changing the level of marital gains and hence isolate the intensive and extensive margins (i.e. isolate changes in assortative mating from changes in marriage rates). We apply this approach to US data from 1962 to 2017, and show that marital patterns can explain about a quarter of the rise in income inequality, the intensive margin contributing 7%, the extensive margin the remaining 93%. Our algorithm also allows us to show that the extensive margin is itself driven for three-fifths by a change in the total number of singles and for two-fifths by a change in the distribution of types among singles (in particular low-educated women).

中文翻译：

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使用匹配模型的婚姻市场反事实

我们使用具有未观察到的异质性的简单结构匹配模型来产生反事实的婚姻模式，从而量化婚姻模式变化对收入不平等加剧的贡献。我们提出了一种算法，它允许我们在不改变婚姻收益水平的情况下确定组合交配的程度，从而隔离密集和广泛的边缘（即，将组合交配的变化与结婚率的变化隔离开来）。我们将这种方法应用于 1962 年至 2017 年的美国数据，结果表明，婚姻模式可以解释收入不平等加剧的四分之一，其中密集边际贡献了 7%，广泛边际贡献了剩余的 93%。