Division of domestic labor and fertility behaviors in China: the impact of extended family traditions on gender equity theory

Abstract

Gender equity in division of domestic labor and its positive effects on fertility have been well documented in Western countries. This research extends the classic gender equity theory to East Asia, a country with an extended family tradition that complicates gender roles. Using four waves of data from the China Family Panel Study (CFPS), we find that: (1) parents or parents-in-law serve as a major source of informal help for housework and childcare in China; (2) the domestic help from parents can significantly increase the likelihood of childbearing for Chinese women; (3) the help from husbands is less important and only significant when parental help is absent. While gender equity in the West has a profound influence on gender equity in the East, Confucian traditions that assign roles according to gender and to the relationships among grandparents, parents, and children are a force to be reckoned with in China.