Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
submittedVersion
Publication Date
3-2025
Abstract
Prior studies have shown a negative effect of motherhood on women’s post-maternal employment, yet few have examined how the motherhood employment penalty may vary by living arrangements. Using data from the 2010–2018 waves of the China Family Panel Studies, we applied fixed-effects linear probability models to examine the effects of the number and age of children on the employment status of Chinese women and how multi-generational living arrangements moderate these effects. The results show that motherhood significantly reduces women’s likelihood of labor force participation. A woman’s coresidence with her natal mother significantly mitigates the motherhood employment penalty, especially in urban China. In contrast, coresidence with only her father or father-in-law does not reduce the penalty. These findings indicate that there is a gendered intergenerational division of labor in Chinese extended families and highlight the importance of considering gender asymmetries in multi-generational relations in understanding mothers’ labor market decisions.
Discipline
Asian Studies | Family, Life Course, and Society | Gender and Sexuality
Research Areas
Sociology
Publication
Social Forces
Volume
103
Issue
3
First Page
948
Last Page
969
ISSN
0037-7732
Identifier
10.1093/sf/soae105
Publisher
Oxford University Press
Embargo Period
11-22-2026
Citation
YU, Jia, & CHENG, Cheng.(2025). Motherhood and employment in China: Gender asymmetries in multi-generational families. Social Forces, 103(3), 948-969.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/4078
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soae105/7730400
Included in
Asian Studies Commons, Family, Life Course, and Society Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons