Gender egalitarian attitudes toward family roles and ability, study time, and the academic performance of rural Chinese adolescents

Abstract

Previous studies conducted in the West have documented the positive role played by gender egalitarian attitudes in determining the academic performances of girls. However, there remains a deficit of studies investigating whether and how different dimensions of gender egalitarian attitudes held by adolescents relate to their academic performance in rural settings. A study of this kind is important in contexts where it is more difficult for adolescents to transcend stereotypes and traditional gender roles. Using data collected from rural China and school-level fixed effect models, this study considers students’ gender egalitarian attitudes along two dimensions: family and ability. Our results showed that egalitarian attitudes toward ability play a significant role in helping girls narrow the gap with boys in math. Further analysis showed that study time allocation partially explains the positive relationship between egalitarian attitudes toward ability and girls’ math scores as well as their overall academic performance. Future policy initiatives could focus on enhancing gender equality awareness among rural children.