The Positive Effects of Affirmative Action: A Case Study in France

Research team: 

José de Sousa, Paris Sud University, Sciences Po LIEPP

Muriel Niederle, Stanford University 

Description of the projet: 

In 1990, France introduced a gender quota in its chess club competitions. We use this institutional change to assess the overall effects of a quota on gender vertical segregation. This change is unique because we have a clear idea of how well chess players perform. Moreover, sufficient time has elapsed since the introduction of the quota to evaluate its longterm effects. Exploiting this institutional change, we find that more women have entered the chess market over time but their participation in club competitions has never exceeded the mandatory quota rate. However, we find that the quality of women has improved considerably in absolute and also relative terms when compared to men and Belgium, where no gender quotas have been introduced.

Poster of the project - June 2020