The Role of Religion for the Development of Work-Family Policies

Abstract

Abstract The main focus of the chapter is on the role of Confucianism for cross-national differences in the contemporary work-family policies in East and Southeast Asian countries. The policies of these welfare states, which represent the “Confucian” welfare regime, are characterized by family policies that traditionally are strongly based on family obligations for care and a weak welfare state. However, more recently, many of these countries have begun to strengthen the role of welfare states in order to support families’ care needs. In order to answer their research question, the authors compare current work-family policies in China, Singapore, and Japan, using a Most Similar System Design (MSSD) method. They find that these countries are charting distinct family policy paths by “handling” Confucian ideas differently. The differences can be explained, according to the findings, by these countries’ policy legacies and social and institutional contexts.