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The evolution of female labour force participation in urban China

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  • Xi Chen

Abstract

Starting from the late 1980s, despite rapid economic growth, female labour force participation in urban China has shown a general declining trend. Using repeated cross‐sections from the Chinese Household Income Project Series (CHIP), this paper attempts to systematically relate the decrease in the labour force participation of married women to the socio‐economic changes happening in urban China during the same period of time. Adopting both linear and nonlinear decomposition techniques, the results indicate that the changes in married women's labour force participation during the periods 1995–2002 and 2007–2013 can be explained by the concurrent changes in the distribution of socio‐economic variables, while the changes during the periods 1988–1995 and 2002–2007 are mostly driven by the leftward shift of married women's participation function.

Suggested Citation

  • Xi Chen, 2019. "The evolution of female labour force participation in urban China," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 27(1), pages 267-299, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:etrans:v:27:y:2019:i:1:p:267-299
    DOI: 10.1111/ecot.12160
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Fenglian Du & Xiao-yuan Dong, 2010. "Women’s Labor Force Participation and Childcare Choices in Urban China during the Economic Transition," Departmental Working Papers 2010-04, The University of Winnipeg, Department of Economics.
    2. M. Rebecca Kilburn & Ashlesha Datar, 2002. "The Availability of Child Care Centers in China and Its Impact on Child Care and Maternal Work Decisions," Working Papers DRU-2924-NIH, RAND Corporation.
    3. M. Rebecca Kilburn & Ashlesha Datar, 2002. "The Availability of Child Care Centers in China and Its Impact on Child Care and Maternal Work Decisions," Working Papers 02-12, RAND Corporation.
    4. Angrist, Joshua D & Evans, William N, 1998. "Children and Their Parents' Labor Supply: Evidence from Exogenous Variation in Family Size," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(3), pages 450-477, June.
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    Cited by:

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    2. He, Xiaobo & Luo, Zijun, 2020. "Does Hukou pay? Evidence from nanny markets in urban China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    3. Xinxin Ma, 2022. "Grandchildren Care and Labor Supply of Middle-Aged Grandmothers: Evidence from China," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 43(3), pages 581-598, September.

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