Constrained occupational choice

Abstract

This paper uses a reduced-form implementation of a structural model of constrained oc-cupational choice to explain the probability that an individual receives a wage offer, animportant determinant of whether self-employment is by choice or necessity. Using datafrom Sierra Leone in 2016, the paper estimates the model and finds that the unconditionaldistribution of offer probabilities has a large spike at a very low value (0.013), but that cer-tain characteristics, such as education, being male and residence in the capital city increasethe likelihood of being able to choose not be self-employed.