Crowding Hypothesis

Discipline: Economics

Occupations with few or no barriers to entry become crowded, thereby depressing wage levels. Some sectors dominated by women or immigrants display the phenomenon.

English economist John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) and Irish-born economist Francis Edgeworth (1845-1926) both used this model of discrimination in their economic analyses.

Also see: dual labor market theory, labor force participation, occupation segregation, segmented labor market theory

Source:
J S Mill, Principles of Political Economy with Some of Their Applications to Social Philosophy (London, 1848)

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