Harvard Economist Claudia Goldin Awarded 2023 Nobel Prize in Economics
For Her Groundbreaking Work Revealing Issues of the Gender Pay Gap
Claudia Goldin, a distinguished economist from Harvard University, has been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Economics for her groundbreaking work revealing issues of the gender pay gap, including the deeply rooted wage disparities between men and women. The announcement was made by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on Monday.
The esteemed award, the latest in this year's series of Nobel Prizes, comes with a prize money of 11 million Swedish kronor, which is roughly one million dollars.
Goldin's research provides a comprehensive overview of women's wages and participation in the workforce throughout history. She illuminates the causes of changes in gender disparities and the main factors driving the remaining gender gap.
In 1990, Goldin became the first woman to secure a permanent position in Harvard's economics department. Notably, she is only the third woman to win the Nobel Prize in Economics and the first to win it without sharing.
Responding to the honor, Goldin expressed that it's a "prize for big ideas and long-term change." She told Reuters, "There are still significant differences between women and men in terms of what they do, how they are paid, and so on." She emphasized her work's focus on understanding why these disparities exist.
"Goldin's discoveries have massive societal implications," stated Randi Hjalmarsson, a member of the Economic Prizes Committee. "She has shown that the nature or source of this underlying gender gap changes over time and with the course of development."
Hjalmarsson echoed Goldin's sentiment, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and understanding the problem, stating, "Only by truly understanding the issue can we pave a better way forward."