Race and gender differences in pediatricians' annual incomes.
OBJECTIVE
To determine the association between race, gender, and pediatricians' annual incomes after controlling for work effort, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics.


METHODS
We conducted a retrospective analysis of 1172 actively practicing black and white male and female pediatricians who responded to the American Medical Association's annual survey of physicians between 1992 and 2001. We used linear regression modeling to calculate annual incomes adjusted for work effort, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics.


RESULTS
White men reported annual incomes of $183,430. After adjusting incomes for work effort, provider characteristics, and practice characteristics, black male pediatricians' mean annual income was $175,640 (95 per cent confidence interval [95 per cent CI], $150,344-201,138). This was $7790 (4.2 per cent) lower, but not statistically different from that of white men (P = .5). However, compared with white male pediatricians' incomes, white female pediatricians' incomes were $150,636 (95 per cent CI, $140,975-$160,298), or $32,794 (18 per cent) lower (P < .001); and black female pediatricians' incomes were $133,018 (95 per cent CI, $108,736-$157,300), or $50,412 (27 per cent) lower (P < .001).


CONCLUSIONS
During the 1990s, female gender was associated with lower annual incomes among pediatricians; differences were greatest for black women. These findings warrant further exploration to determine what factors might cause the gender-based income differences that we found.
Weeks
William B
WB
VA Outcomes Group REAP, White River Junction, VT 05009, USA. wbw@dartmouth.edu
Wallace
Amy E
AE
D044383:Black People; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007182:Income / Q000639:trends; D008297:Male; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000191:economics*; D012737:Sex Factors; D014481:United States; D044465:White People; D001741:Black or African American