Some Models of Racial Discrimination in the Labor Market

Kenneth Arrow

ResearchPublished 1971

Part of a RAND study on the measurement of racial discrimination in the economic sphere. Although neoclassical theory can offer a coherent and plausible explanation of the impact of racial discrimination and accounts in a gross way for the known facts, some problems remain. This Memorandum describes a simple model by which an employer can purchase black labor at a fixed price; for this labor he must choose some point on an indifference curve between wages and the proportion of whites in the firm. The implications — no wage differentials on the one hand and segregation on the other — are respectively contrary to and harmonious with observation. Thus, there is a failure of convexity — extreme alternatives are preferred to compromises. Technical analysis of the model is presented in notes following the text.

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  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Available
  • Year: 1971
  • Print Format: Paperback
  • Paperback Pages: 60
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  • Document Number: RM-6253-RC

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RAND Style Manual
Arrow, Kenneth, Some Models of Racial Discrimination in the Labor Market, RAND Corporation, RM-6253-RC, 1971. As of September 11, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_memoranda/RM6253.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Arrow, Kenneth, Some Models of Racial Discrimination in the Labor Market. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1971. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_memoranda/RM6253.html. Also available in print form.
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