Female fertility history and mid-late-life health: Findings from China

China’s middle-aged and older women suffer from poorer health than men. Using national baseline data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), a survey conducted from 2011 to 2012, this article applies logistic models to investigate the association between female fertility history (parity, early childbearing, late childbearing) and middle-aged and late-life health. We find that parity is related to the mid-late-life health of women. Women with four children or more are more likely to suffer from activities of daily living (ADL) impairment and poorer self-rated health than those with one to three children. Early childbearing is associated with ADL impairment; however, the correlation is mediated by socioeconomic status. Early childbearing is related to self-rated health in later life by an indirect-only mediation effect via educational attainment and personal income.     

Family Structure and Quality of Life of Elders in Rural China: The Role of the New Rural Social Pension

Using data from a survey in Ankang district of Shaanxi province of China in 2011, this article examines the protective effect of the New Rural Social Pension (NRSP) on quality of life of rural elders, as well the moderating effect on association between family structure and quality of life. An instrumental variable approach is used. NRSP is shown to significantly improve the quality of life of rural elders, and a robustness check shows that this effect is consistent across different sets of subgroups. Compared with the elders who have at least one son, the quality of life of those who are childless or have only one child is significantly lower. The NRSP is more likely to significantly improve the quality of life of one-child elders. In addition, the associations between the NRSP and the different facets of quality of life of the elders are significant except for the facet of sensory abilities.     

传承与延续:叩问中国古代文论的当代价值

中国古代文论毫无疑问是构建中国当代文艺学的重要理论资源之一,但如何认识、把握这一资源,使之真正成为中国当代文艺学的有机部分,却涉及一系列的问题。张晶一文提出必须建立从古代文论到当代文艺学的转换中介;韩经太一文则提出了解读古代文论的新视角,即从语言艺术切入古代文论,使之回归艺术本位;林继中一文则坚持以发展流变的眼光,把通变中富有生命力的文论范畴作为今天文艺学建设的生长点,以此拓展本土文论的内涵;蒋述卓一文则对古代文论的当代价值作了系统的梳理。     

Demographic Consequences of Gender Discrimination in China: Simulation Analysis of Policy Options

The large number of missing females in China, a consequence of gender discrimination, is having and will continue to have a profound effect on the country’s population development. In this paper, we analyze the causes of this gender discrimination in terms of institutions, culture and, economy, and suggest public policies that might help eliminate gender discrimination. Using a population simulation model, we study the effect of public policies on the sex ratio at birth and excess female child mortality, and the effect of gender discrimination on China’s population development. We find that gender discrimination will decrease China’s population size, number of births, and working age population, accelerate population aging and exacerbate the male marriage squeeze. These results provide theoretical support for suggesting that the government enact and implement public policies aimed at eliminating gender discrimination.     

The Effect of Urbanization on China’s Fertility

The relationship between urbanization and fertility decline is known to be inverse in developed countries. However, the nature of this relationship in developing countries that already have relatively low fertilities is not well-understood. This study aims to illustrate how much urbanization contributed to China’s fertility decline between 1982 and 2008 and forecasts how much it can contribute to future reductions in fertility. The study examines changes in the total fertility rate (TFR) at both the national and provincial levels, given regional differences in the urbanization rate. The results show that changes in rural fertility behavior accounted for most of the decline in the national TFR between 1982 and 2008. This finding suggests that official birth control policies were instrumental in curbing China’s population growth. However, urbanization was responsible for about 22% of the decrease in TFR during this period, and its effect was especially important during the latter years (2001–2008). In most provinces, urbanization associated with a decline in provincial-level fertility. The forecasts indicate that urbanization will become the primary factor behind future declines in national fertility. Given the negative effect of urbanization on the TFR, it is possible to relax the one-child policy without having adverse implications for population growth.     

性别失衡背景下农民工心理失范的性别差异研究

本文从角色视角,利用调查数据,分析性别失衡背景下农民工心理失范的性别差异及其机制。研究发现,性别、婚姻状况和与“养家糊口”相关的社会角色及特征对农民工的心理失范具有显著影响,其中,男性的心理失范程度要比女性严重,婚姻状态对农民工的心理失范影响没有性别差异,与“养家糊口”相关的社会角色及特征对农民工心理失范的影响存在性别差异。研究进一步发展了暴露差异理论与脆弱性差异理论,认为社会角色与性别角色变迁的不一致导致了角色紧张的出现,从而导致心理失范及其影响因素的性别差异。     

Gender in Marriage and Life Satisfaction Under Gender Imbalance in China: The Role of Intergenerational Support and SES

This study examined gender differences in the influence of marital status and marital quality on life satisfaction. The roles of intergenerational support and perceived socioeconomic status in the relationship between marriage and life satisfaction were also explored. The analysis was conducted with data from the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) in 2006, representing 1,317 women and 1,152 men at least 25 years old. Chi-squared tests and logistic regression models were used in this process. Marriage, including marital status and relationship quality, has a protective function for life satisfaction. Marital status is more important for males, but marital quality is more important for females. The moderating roles of intergenerational support and perceived socioeconomic status are gender specific, perhaps due to norms that ascribe different roles to men and women in marriage.     

Marriage form and fertility in rural China: an investigation in three counties

Using data from two surveys in three counties where the prevalence of uxorilocal marriage differs greatly, this paper analyzes impact of marriage form, individual, family, and social factors on fertility and its regional differences. The results show that, under the Chinese patrilineal joint family system, uxorilocal marriage does not universally increase fertility, which is likely to be determined by other factors. It is further found that fertility differs greatly in the three regions, and is significantly lower in regions where uxorilocal marriage is common than in regions where virilocal marriage is dominant. Women’s marriage cohort, age at first marriage, and number of sisters all have significant effects on fertility. These findings address the process and consequences of change in rural family and marriage customs during the current demographic and social transition.     

20世纪中国"失踪女性"数量的估计

20世纪80年代以来,中国持续升高的人口出生性别比和历史上长期存在的女孩死亡水平偏高导致失踪女性现象严重,使人口性别结构失衡.文章使用全国5次人口普查数据,在对普查数据修正的基础上,分时期估计了1900～2000年中国失踪女性的数量和比例,研究各时期失踪女性的特征和主要原因,并讨论了估计结果与其他学者研究结果的不同之处及其原因.     

变异学视域下的日本近世绘画中的李渔形象

以比较文学变异学的"文化过滤"思想为理论工具,以"日本近世流传的李渔肖像"为线索,结合日本国宝《十便十宜帖》的创作以及《芥子园画传》东渡日本的情况分析,挖掘出日本近世绘画世界中有关李渔形象的特殊一面,即文史兼长、离俗隐逸、独具慧眼的艺术家形象.这种形象有别于以往常被提及的作为戏剧家李渔的形象呈现的"俗"味,是一种与之相对的"雅致".这种"雅"味的产生是文化过滤的结果,其本质是日本近世文艺界对"世袭制"积弊的反拨.