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Family support or social support? The role of clan culture

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  • Chuanchuan Zhang

    (Central University of Finance and Economics)

Abstract

This paper examines the impact of cultural norms on arrangements made for old-age support. Using data from a recent national household survey in China, I show that clan culture is significantly associated with a set of individual values about the purpose of childbearing. I then find that, among older people in rural China, clan culture is positively related to birth rates and the likelihood of having a son, coresidence with adult or married sons, and receiving financial transfers from non-coresident children. Finally, I find a significantly negative relationship between clan culture and enrollment in social pension programs. The overall results indicate that cultural norms have a significant influence on arrangements for old-age support.

Suggested Citation

  • Chuanchuan Zhang, 2019. "Family support or social support? The role of clan culture," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 32(2), pages 529-549, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jopoec:v:32:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s00148-018-0686-z
    DOI: 10.1007/s00148-018-0686-z
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    Cited by:

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    2. Varvarigos, Dimitrios, 2021. "Upstream intergenerational transfers in economic development: The role of family ties and their cultural transmission," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    3. Kebin Deng & Zhong Ding & Xu Liu, 2023. "Clan loyalty and COVID‐19 diffusion: Evidence from China," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(4), pages 910-938, April.
    4. Fang Xu & Xiaoru Zhang & Di Zhou, 2023. "Do rural clan‐based networks reduce the risk of a return to poverty? Evidence from China," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 35(5), pages 856-883, July.
    5. Tang, Can & Zhao, Zhong, 2023. "Informal institution meets child development: Clan culture and child labor in China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 277-294.
    6. Elizabeth Wianto & Elty Sarvia & Chien-Hsu Chen, 2021. "Authoritative Parents and Dominant Children as the Center of Communication for Sustainable Healthy Aging," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-18, March.
    7. Dessy, Sylvain & Tiberti, Luca & Zoundi, David, 2023. "The gender education gap in developing countries: Roles of income shocks and culture," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(1), pages 160-180.
    8. Cheng, Jiameng & Dai, Yanke & Lin, Shu & Ye, Haichun, 2021. "Clan culture and family ownership concentration: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    9. Ang Sun & Chuanchuan Zhang & Xiangting Hu, 2019. "Boys, Girls, and Grandparents: The Impact of the Sex of Preschool-Aged Children on Family Living Arrangements and Maternal Labor Supply," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 56(3), pages 813-833, June.
    10. Yuke He & Geng Niu & Guochang Zhao, 2022. "Parents' pension eligibility and migrant consumption in urban China: Evidence from a quasi‐experiment," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(4), pages 2317-2335, November.
    11. Tang, Can & Zhao, Zhong, 2022. "Informal institution meets child development," MERIT Working Papers 2022-032, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    12. Dayuan Xie & Yonghong Zhou, 2022. "Religion effects on fertility preference: evidence from China," Journal of Population Research, Springer, vol. 39(3), pages 341-371, September.
    13. Kim, Jun Hyung & Wang, Shaoda, 2021. "Birth Order Effects, Parenting Style, and Son Preference," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1007, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    14. Wang, Qingfeng, 2018. "Son Preference and Human Capital," MPRA Paper 95411, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 01 Aug 2019.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Culture; Clan; Living arrangement; Intergenerational transfer; Social pension; China;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H55 - Public Economics - - National Government Expenditures and Related Policies - - - Social Security and Public Pensions
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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