In cold economic terms, marriage tends to benefit men more than it benefits women. At all income levels, women are expected to handle child care and other household tasks, and to sacrifice for the good of the household.

“Many high-earning women might not be able to get their spouses to quit their jobs and move for a new opportunity or split child care evenly,” Yavorsky said.

When a man is the primary breadwinner, 70 percent of women in elite households don’t participate in the labor force, according to Yavorsky and colleagues. When a woman’s income is enough to put the household in the top 1 percent, men stay home about 22 percent of the time.

“Many men would not be where they are without having spouses that were willing to do the majority of household production and willing to subordinate their careers,” Yavorsky said.