This paper investigates the role of non-cognitive skills in the occupational segregation of
young workers entering the U.S. labor market. We find entry into male-dominated fields of
study and male-dominated occupations are both related to the extent to which individuals
believe they are intelligent and have “male” traits while entry into male-dominated
occupations is also related to the willingness to work hard, impulsivity, and the tendency to
avoid problems. The nature of these relationships differs for men and women, however. Noncognitive
skills (intelligence and impulsivity) also influence movement into higher-paid
occupations, but in ways that are similar for men and women. On balance, non-cognitive
skills provide an important, though incomplete, explanation for segregation in the fields that
young men and women study as well as in the occupations in which they are employed.