Graduate Women’s Beliefs about Gender Roles in China

Abstract

Despite government laws to protect the rights of women in China, strong cultural values continue to privilege males. Well-educated women express ambiguity about gender roles and responsibilities. This basic qualitative study documents graduate students’ perceptions of gender roles in China’s rapidly changing culture through content analysis of 21 course essays on the role of gender in identity formation written by graduate psychology students in central China and eight follow up interviews with additional graduate women translated into English for analysis. Participants in this study acknowledged that males are still accorded more personal freedoms, greater acceptance for “bad” behavior at home, and privileged status in school settings and in the job market. Several interviewees indicate they admire “capable” women, meaning those recognized for achievement, but they also wonder if such women can also play appropriate family roles. Tensions clearly exist between job aspirations and traditional roles of wife and mother. A grounded theory approach to analysis using open and axial coding of data identified four emergent themes: Filial piety towards the family; Autonomy versus femininity; Division of labor: Gendered roles and responsibilities; and Media and school as mediators of gender identity. Further research with diverse Chinese women is needed including comparisons of rural and urban experiences of gender roles.