妇女生命历程对其男孩偏好的影响

男孩偏好是导致我国人口出生性别比升高的根本原因.妇女是男孩偏好传统的受害者,她们的生命历程中经历了许多基于性别的差别待遇事件.这些事件会对妇女自身的性别观念产生什么样的影响？文章以生命历程理论为理论框架,通过对调查数据和资料的分析,研究妇女生命历程中的事件对其男孩偏好的影响.研究结果表明,在妇女生命历程各个不同阶段中,她们所经历的一系列基于性别的差别性待遇的影响会不断累积,让她们逐渐感知到两性在家庭、社会中所处的不平等地位,从而增加妇女发生男孩偏好的可能性.甚至这些经历和事件发生的时间、次序,都会对妇女的男孩偏好产生影响.在此基础上,文章提出弱化妇女男孩偏好的政策建议.     

文化因素对性别偏好的决定作用

中国传统文化中强烈的男孩偏好是导致高出生性别比的根本原因,且急剧的社会经济变革和有效的计划生育政策所导致的低生育率也起到了加剧的作用。国家生育调控导致夫妇在生育孩子数量和性别选择上的冲突,本质上是制度与文化的冲突。传统生育文化的力量是顽强和巨大的,并带有一定程度的继承性和历史滞留性,只有以一种新型生育文化去替代重男轻女、传宗接代的传统生育文化,才能逐渐弱化人们的性别偏好。     

选择性、传统还是适应:流动对农村育龄妇女男孩偏好的影响研究

我国人口的大规模流动正在改变着农村育龄妇女的生育观念,传统生育观念中的男孩偏好逐步弱化.文章梳理了流动对人们生育观念影响的相关理论,并通过对调查数据的分析,在控制了人口流动的选择偏差的条件下,比较了从未流动的农村育龄妇女和有流动经历的农村育龄妇女在男孩偏好方面的差异,并进一步研究了“流动时是否与丈夫在一起”的经历对农村育龄妇女男孩偏好的影响.结果表明,有流动经历和没有流动经历的妇女在男孩偏好方面确实存在显著的差异,这种差异一方面是由于流动的选择性造成的,另一方面也源于流动使妇女的生育观念更为现代化,弱化了她们的男孩偏好.但是,流出地的文化传统依然通过家庭和社区影响着妇女生育的性别偏好.     

生育性别偏好行为的双向选择——来自陕西省神木县的调查发现

本研究根据神木县经济、社会发展以及政策调整,结合群众的生育观念调查和访谈,以出生人口性别比变动趋势分析生育性别偏好的发展和变化。研究发现,在经济、社会发展以及政策调整进程中,存在生育性别偏好的双向选择：一方面,男孩功能随着经济与社会发展出现减弱,促进了不再追求生育儿子的生育性别偏好正向选择;另一方面,在男孩偏好文化顽固的地区,经济社会发展与政策调整刺激了男孩偏好,加剧了偏好儿子的生育性别偏好逆向选择。研究有利于明确经济、社会以及政策对于生育性别偏好的影响,从而为进一步制定有效的性别失衡治理政策提供依据。     

现代夫妻关系对妇女男孩偏好的影响

在影响妇女男孩偏好的因素中，夫妻关系是非常重要的一个方面。文章利用中国人民大学人口与发展研究中心2010年在浙江、湖北和河北3个省份开展的“农村妇女家庭及生育状况”专题调查数据，运用回归模型分析了现代夫妻关系对妇女男孩偏好的影响。研究发现，目前我国的夫妻关系表现出明显的现代特征，而且现代夫妻关系对妇女的男孩偏好起着弱化的作用。家庭地位高、权力资源丰富、对丈夫家依赖程度较低的妇女，她们的男孩偏好比较弱。     

婚姻形式与男孩偏好:对中国农村三个县的考察

应用在招赘婚姻高度流行区、中度流行区和低度流行区的调查数据 ,本文研究了严格生育控制下婚姻形式以及个人、家庭和社会因素对男孩偏好的影响及其区域差异。研究发现 ,嫁娶婚姻的生育行为有明显的男孩偏好倾向 ,而招赘婚姻的生育行为则不存在性别偏好 ;男孩偏好存在显著的区域差异 ,招赘婚姻的流行显著降低了当地的男孩偏好水平。研究结果为政府在农村降低男孩偏好水平、稳定低生育率提供了新的思路和途径     

农村妇女对子女的效用预期与其男孩偏好的关系

文章利用中国人民大学2010年相关调查数据从经济、照料和文化三个方面分析了我国农村地区妇女对孩子未来效用的总体预期和分性别预期,以及这种预期效用的性别差异与人们的强性别偏好之间的关系,并得出以下结论:随着经济社会的发展和人口流动的频繁,人们目前对子代的养老效用预期在经济和居住方面已经很低,但在生病照料和赡养、传宗接代方面期望依然很高;人们对男孩和女孩的预期各有侧重,依然体现了传统的"男主外,女主内"的性别认知;人们对孩子效用预期的性别差异与人们的性别偏好呈显著正相关,尤其体现在老年照料、赡养责任和传宗接代等方面,代际经济支持已经不再是影响人们男孩偏好的重要原因。     

中国农民工的社会网络与性别偏好——基于深圳调查的研究

文章利用西安交通大学人口与发展研究所2005年中国深圳市农民工调查数据,基于社会网络理论定量研究了农民工的性别偏好现状及其影响因素。研究发现流动后农民工的生育观念与行为仍具有明显的男孩偏好特征;社会网络因素、流动因素和个体因素在一定程度上对农民工的男孩偏好观念与行为产生了影响。本文的研究结果对于理解中国城镇人口出生性别比偏高的现象和原因有重要作用。     

性别偏好与性别选择性生育技术利用意愿——中国与德国、英国和美国的比较

国内以往对人们性别偏好的研究多集中于对"男孩偏好"的研究,而对性别偏好的其他类型关注很少,特别是对人们性别偏好的强度几乎没有涉及。运用国内298名大学生的问卷调查资料,结合美国、英国和德国的相关实证研究,对性别偏好的类型和强度进行中外比较研究后发现,与西方育龄妇女生育意愿相比,中国大学生总体上性别均衡偏好的比例更大,而无偏好的比例较小;中国大学生希望使用性别选择技术以达到生育理想性别孩子的比例相对更高。     

农村二孩家庭男孩偏好对长姐体质健康的影响研究

基于资源分配理论,选用中国家庭追踪调查（CFPS）2010-2018年数据,考察了农村二孩家庭中男孩偏好对长姐体质健康的影响及内在机制。研究发现：男孩偏好对长姐体质健康具有显著负向影响,相比有妹妹,有弟弟的长姐身高Z评分将降低0.254个单位,表现出发育迟缓和消瘦的概率比正常组将分别提高5%和2%,但与肥胖不存在显著关联。性别平等感知在男孩偏好与长姐体质健康关系中发挥调节效应,父母感知到的社会性别平等越弱,男孩偏好对长姐体质健康的不利影响越强。男孩偏好对长姐体质健康的影响存在异质性,长姐处于学龄期、二孩处于学龄前和父亲出生队列较早时,男孩偏好对长姐体质健康将产生更不利的影响。未来应结合我国农村地区重男轻女的社会环境,在保证儿童福利有效供给的基础上,发展以家庭为核心的福利政策,全面构建普惠型儿童福利支持体系。     

The Study on the Relationship of the Weakening Son Preferenceand Social Economic Development in China

With the aging of population,the academic researches tend to focus on the size, structure, quality of the labor forces. This article, based on the data of 2012 CLDS, describes demographically the employment status of China＇s labor force by four types： employee,employer, self- employed and farming and analyzes the variations in the indicators of the 4 types employment status, such as human capital,working hours,work sites,income,social security, job evaluation and work values and identity of social class, etc. Understanding these variations is a great significance to the proper labor policy-making.     

Explaining son preference in rural India: the independent role of structural versus individual factors

Much research has been done on demographic manifestations of son preference, particularly girls’ excess mortality; however, there is less research that focuses on son preference itself. This paper analyzes the determinants of son preference in rural India. We separate the independent, relative effects of characteristics of individual women and their households, village opportunities for women and village development, and social norms. We look at both socioeconomic and sociocultural variables. Finally, we examine whether predictors of son preference differ by desired family size. Our data come from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) India, 1992–1993. We use an ordered logit model, with dummy variables for state of residence. Our analysis shows that women’s education, particularly at secondary and higher levels, is consistently and significantly associated with weaker son preference, regardless of desired family size. Once factors measuring social norms, such as marriage customs, caste and religion, are included, economic wealth and women’s employment at household or village levels are not significant. Media access remains significant, suggesting an influence of “modernizing” ideas. Among social factors, caste and religion are associated with son preference but, once state of residence is controlled for, marriage patterns and cultivation patterns are insignificant. The strength and significance for son preference of many determinants differs by desired family size. Our results suggest that policy makers seeking to influence son preference need to identify and target different policy levers to women in different fertility and social contexts, rather than try an approach of one size that fits all.     

“男孩偏好”的家族制度影响研究

本文根据2010年中国人民大学“家庭及生育状况研究调查”数据,分析我国农村广泛存在的家族制度对男孩偏好的影响。结论认为,家族制度约束力的三个部分：宗族势力、婚嫁模式和传宗接代观念对男孩偏好具有显著影响。其中,婚嫁模式对男孩偏好的影响程度最高。     

Measuring the effect of sex preference on fertility: The case of Korea

Preferences for male or female children or a balanced number of sons and daughters are common throughout the world. The dominant preference is for male offspring, particularly in less developed countries. Strong son preference is often tempered, however, by a desire to have at least one child of each sex. In more developed countries a balance preference is more common, often together with a strong preference for the first child to be a son. Although it is usually assumed that sex preference can substantially influence fertility, some analysts argue that the effect is negligible. An intermediate position is taken by those who say that sex preference may not have much impact at high fertility levels, but that as average family sizes begin to fall, sex preference will become a more important factor in fertility decisions. Despite the keen interest that has been shown in sex preference, there is surprisingly little empirical evidence of its effects on fertility. Moreover, much of the research in this area is methodologically weak. The measures that have been used in the past have been subject to a number of criticisms that call their results into question. This paper proposes a new measure of the effect of sex preference on fertility that avoids many of the problems inherent in other methods. The measure is based on widely available survey data on the sex composition of children and can be used with any measure of fertility or family planning. It can handle any type of sex preference and does not assume a linear relationship between sex preference and fertility.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Son preference in rural China: patrilineal families and socioeconomic change

This article draws on a survey conducted in six provinces in summer 2008 to investigate the determinants of son preference in rural China. The analysis confirms the conventional wisdom that son preference is embedded within patrilineal family structures and practices. We extend our analysis by exploring specific aspects of variation within patrilineal family culture. We find that the patrilineal group (clan) composition of villages and family participation in practices such as building ancestral halls and updating genealogies significantly influence son preference. Yet even though son preference is embedded within patrilineal family culture, our analysis suggests that over time the attenuation of son preference is likely. This is because determinants associated with socioeconomic change—for instance, higher levels of education, direct exposure to official policy education materials, higher income (a proxy for rural industrialization), and agricultural mechanization—all attenuate son preference. Being younger and female are also associated with weaker son preference, and both characteristics are likely to interact with education and industrialization to further dilute son preference in the longer term. Nevertheless, our findings suggest that concerted efforts are needed to ameliorate institutional discrimination against rural people in welfare provisioning and in labor markets, and to promote multiple dimensions of gender equality, including in land rights, wage rates, and education.     

Republic of Korea. Country feature

The Government of Korea's 5th 5-Year Economic and Social Development Plan (1982-86) seeks to reduce the population growth rate from its 1982 level of 1.58% to 1.49% by 1986; it is assumed that the population replacement level of fertility (total fertility rate, 2.1) will be attained in 1988. The task of achieving these demographic targets is expected to be made more difficult by factors such as the impact of the 1950s baby boom and widespread son preference. New population control policy measures announced in 1981 call for improvements in the current family planning program management system; a new social and institutional support system to inculcate the small family size norm; strengthened information, education, and communication activities for family planning; and establishment of coordination among the government organizations involved in population-related activities. Numerous social support measures have already been put into effect, including income tax exemptions for up to 2 children, inclusion of population education in the school curriculum, priority in alloting public housing to sterilization acceptors with 2 or fewer children, and provision of IUD services through the medical insurance system. The number of contraceptive acceptors in the government program increased 78.3% from 1981-83, from 614,000 to 1,094,600. Sterilization and menstrual regulation services have shown particularly sharp increases. Program achievement for 1983 was equivalent to 19% of eligible women ages 15-44 years. The total fertility rate stood at 2.7 in 1982. Major efforts now must be directed toward eradicating the strong parental son preference and ensuring better family planning program efficiency and effectiveness.     

Old Habits Die Hard? Lingering Son Preference in an Era of Normalizing Sex Ratios at Birth in South Korea

South Korea was among the first countries to report both an abnormally high sex ratio at birth (SRB) and its subsequent normalization. We examine the role of son preference in driving fertility intentions during a period of declining SRB and consider the contribution of individual characteristics and broader social context to explaining changes in intentions. We employ data from the National Survey on Fertility, Family Health and Welfare that span 1991–2012. We find that reported son preference declined to a great extent but remained substantial by the end of the observation period, and that the intention to have a third child still differed by sex of existing children. Change in individual-level factors does not explain the decline in son preference, suggesting that broad social changes were also important. This study provides a better understanding of how son preference evolves in the post-transitional context of very low fertility.