Migration, masculinity, and family

Abstract

ABSTRACTPrevious studies of migration, family, and gender have shown that migration is not only an event that changes family life, the change itself is a gendered process. How migrant women develop strategies to cope with challenges posed by either their own migration or their husbands’ migration has been widely studied. However, how migrant men adjust and change their care practices and domestic roles to accommodate challenges brought about by migration to their family lives has not been as extensively explored. Using interview data gathered from male rural-to-urban migrant workers in South China, this paper fills this gap by studying male migrants’ agency and masculinity through the concept of masculine compromise. Masculine compromise delineates how migrant men strive to respond to changing family circumstances triggered by migration while maintaining the gender boundaries that underpin their dominance within the family. As a concept, masculine compromise underscores the material impact of migration on gender practices and family life; and the limited effect it has on gender attitudes and identity. Masculine compromise provides a feminist lens to analyse the complex effect of migration on changing masculinity and gender relationships within the family.