Internal migration is often framed as an investment that improves household economic well-being, yet a large literature on family migration suggests that the gains from moving may be unevenly distributed within couples, potentially widening gender inequality through "tied mover" dynamics. Using the data from Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), this study examines whether moving is associated with different earnings outcomes for men and women within married households, and whether migration is linked to a widening of the gender gap in labor income. The project focuses on a preliminary set of recent biannual PSID waves (2015-2023) and constructs individual-level measures of labor income and key demographic controls, alongside family-level measures of residential mobility. As an initial empirical benchmark, cross-sectional models are estimated for a single wave to document baseline patterns and to guide later longitudinal analysis.
Preliminary regression results show a substantial positive association between moving and men's log labor income, while the corresponding association for women is smaller and, in some specifications, statistically weaker. An interaction model indicates that the migration-income association differs significantly by gender, consistent with the idea that family moves may more strongly benefit men's earnings trajectories than women's. These initial findings motivate the next stage of the project, which will implement a longitudinal framework to compare within-person earnings before and after moves, reducing bias from unobserved heterogeneity and selection into migration. Overall, the study contributes to research on internal migration and gender inequality by highlighting how mobility may shape earnings asymmetries within families, and it sets up a panel-based strategy to evaluate whether migration contributes to persistent gender gaps in economic outcomes.