Maria Frech
I am a PhD candidate at Toulouse School of Economics, supervised by Christian Hellwig.
I am a quantitative macroeconomist with research interests in wealth inequality, household finance and entrepreneurship.
You can find my CV here.
Don't hesitate to reach out at maria.frech@tse-fr.eu
Working Papers
The Hidden Demand for Flexibility - A Theory of Gendered Employment Dynamics (with Gerard Maideu-Morera)
Abstract: Empirical evidence highlights women’s demand for flexible working hours as a critical cause of the persistent gender disparities in the labor market. We propose a theory of how hidden demand for flexibility drives gendered employment dynamics. We develop a dynamic contracting model between an employer and an employee whose time availability is stochastic and unverifiable. We model men and women only to differ in their probability of having low time availability, which we measure in the ATUS. We explore contracts designed specifically for each gender (gender-tailored) and the polar case where a male-tailored contract is given to both men and women. For the latter, we show that contracting frictions endogenously give rise to well-documented gendered labor market outcomes: (i) the divergence and non-convergence of gender earnings differentials over the life-cycle, and (ii) women’s shorter job duration and weaker labor force attachment.
Unicredit Award 2025 - best paper on gender economics
Gender Differences in Savings over the Life Cycle: The Role of Financial Literacy (with Marta Cota, Marta Morazzoni and Michael Tallent)
Abstract: This paper examines gender differences in wealth accumulation through a microfounded model of financial decision-making, and highlights that gender gaps in financial literacy can contribute to gender wealth inequality over the life-cycle. Using data from US and Dutch surveys, we show that women are more likely to delegate financial decisions and have lower financial literacy, which however increases after events such as divorce or widowhood, or after shocks to their spouse’s health. Moreover, while financial literacy increases women’s investment margins more than men’s, its impact is stronger for safe assets accumulation and limited for equity holdings, suggesting a role for subjective financial confidence in shaping their investment margins. Our model highlights how marital dynamics influence financial decisions and underscores the importance of targeted policies to improve women’s financial literacy, promote independence, and reduce gender wealth disparities over the life-cycle.
Work in Progress
Dynamism versus Dynasties
Entrepreneurship and Self-employment: Consequences of Life-cycle Timing