than individuals working in professional and technical occupations (the
omitted occupation category), holding all other variables in the model
constant. On the other hand, nonfarm managers and administrators earned
about 2.5 percent more, on average, than professional and technical
workers, holding other factors constant.
Also shown in table 2 are coefficients for demographic variables and other
independent variables that were included in the model, such as age of
individual, age of youngest child, number of children, metropolitan area,
marital status, and region. Several of the coefficients in this category, such
as age of youngest child and number of children, were not found to be
statistically significant in the overall model. However, other coefficients
were statistically significant, such as age of individual, living in a
metropolitan area, living in the South, being married, and being black. For
example, in table 2 in the alternative estimate column of the overall model
results, the coefficient for living in a metropolitan area was 0.0229. This
means that individuals living in a metropolitan area were estimated to earn
about 2.3 percent more than those living in non-metropolitan areas, and
this difference was statistically significant. Also, according to the model,
individuals living in the South were estimated to earn about 4.2 percent
less than those not living in the South, and this difference was statistically
significant.
Table 2 also shows the regression results of the separate analysis of men
and women. Most of the variables had coefficients that were both positive
or both negative for men and women, indicating that the variables affected
earnings in the same direction. This is the case for all work pattern
variables. For example, as shown in table 2 in the alternative estimate
columns for men and women, the estimated coefficients for the work
experience variable were positive for men and women (0.0264 and 0.0249
respectively) and the coefficient for the square of work experience is
negative for both men and women. As discussed above, earnings for both
men and women generally increase with additional experience, but that
increase declines the higher the level of work experience (for example, the
gain between the fifth and sixth year of work experience is larger than
between the 25th and 26th year of work experience). Estimated coefficients
for other variables were also negative for both men and women. For
example, as shown in table 2 in the alternative estimate columns for men
and women separately, the coefficients for black individuals (relative to
white—the omitted category) were as follows: -0.1385 for men and
–0.0661 for women. This means that black men earned about 13.9 percent
less than white men, while black women earned about 6.6 percent less
than white women.