Inscription:On the evening of November 11, 2023, the 169th issue of [Langrun Gezheng] of Peking University Development Institute was held simultaneously online and offline. This article is based on the theme comments of Lei Xiaoyan, Boya Distinguished Professor of Peking University, Secretary of the Party Committee and Director of the Academic Committee of the National Development Institute, and Changjiang Scholar Distinguished Professor of the Ministry of Education.
Based on the research of 2023 Nobel laureate Claudia Goldin and Chinese data, Mr. Zhao Yaohui sorted out and compared the performance of Chinese and American women in career and family. Teacher Huang Wei focused on the analysis of women's fertility costs.
I would like to share my experience with the speeches of the two of you.
The education level of women in China is improving rapidly, but more needs to be done to achieve true equality between men and women.
First of all, Mr. Zhao's research on career and family choices is very comprehensive and in-depth. She analyzed various aspects such as employment, marriage, and childbirth, and compared Golding's views and findings summarized in the book based on data from the history of the United States with the data of China, so that we have a clearer understanding of the relevant issues.
I also have a few feelings when I look at Golding's research.
First, from the perspective of the development map of the United States, women have gone through five stages of career and family choices, which is different from the situation in China. Although we do not have detailed data in China, we can see that the education level of Chinese women has improved, the employment rate has increased, and the fertility rate has declined at a relatively faster rate. In this regard, policy promotion has played an important role.
The reasons for the rapid increase in women's educational attainment, including education reforms (compulsory education and university expansion), which have increased women's access to education, should also include family planning policies, which aim to limit the number of children in a family. Since each family can only have one child, families can devote more of their limited resources to their children's education, and objectively their investment in children's education can no longer be gender-biased. In this case, the family of an only girl has become one of the important reasons for the rapid improvement of women's education level in China. At the same time, the decline in fertility is largely related to family planning policies. As a result of this policy, China's fertility rate has rapidly fallen to its current level. However, we also need to recognize that even in countries where there is no family planning policy, fertility rates can decline, but family planning policies have clearly contributed to the decline in China's fertility rate, bringing it to a low level at a rapid pace. And this "speed" is actually a distinctive feature of China.
Now, again, we need to act quickly to change that. Why act as soon as possible? Because it involves the reshaping of fertility culture. Fertility habits may then form a culture, and once formed, it will be difficult to change whether it is the perception of men and women or issues such as gender discrimination. Once people have only one child or no children and go from habit to cultural tradition, it becomes very difficult to change. Therefore, we need to move quickly so that we can achieve better results.
Second, in the process, traditional sexist attitudes are also changing rapidly. Today, Chinese women have the status of half the sky, which actually shows the rapid progress of our society. However, for this equality to become a solid culture, more power is needed to push it. This is a point I see from the comparison with the United States.
Third, the data shows that only a small percentage of women choose not to marry for life, and most still want to marry and have children, at least a child. Childbearing is not only a woman's desire, in fact, men have a stronger desire to marry and have children, because men have always had the responsibility of carrying on the lineage. Now that women have caught up with men in education and employment, they are able to make the same contribution to the labor market and economic development, which is a sign of progress. Women become more independent and better able to say "no". If both men and women want to marry and have children, it has to be better for women.
Fourth, we can see that American women are now in the fifth stage of balancing career and family. At this stage, equality is a very important condition, especially in terms of the sharing of household chores. Such equal conditions support women in their pursuit of reconciling career and family. Nowadays, the education of women in our country has developed to this extent, and they not only pursue their careers, but also pursue their families. They are all looking forward to entering the current fifth phase of the United States. However, we still have a long way to go before this stage. I hope that in the future, we can make more efforts in this regard, and finally truly achieve the goal of entering the fifth phase of the United States, instead of taking detours or other paths.
The cost of childbearing deserves to be weighed more rigorously, with particular attention to the difference in cost for men and women
Professor Huang Wei's assessment of the cost of childbirth has been studied in many international studies, and there are relatively few related studies in China. In his lectures, he used an econometric approach to analysis in an attempt to identify the causal relationships that really influence fertility decisions. This assessment is very important because it helps us to think about how we can increase fertility rates in the future to reverse the current situation, when women already occupy half of the labor market. It's important to understand the gender differences in the cost of childbearing to give a clear picture of the responsibilities and pressures women are undertaking. Because as I said before, women make choices based on their circumstances. Such studies allow more people, especially men and male family members, to see the essence of the problem. Only after seeing the problem can we make changes and take effective measures to really increase fertility.
I also have some questions I would like to discuss.
First, about the measurement of costs. Mr. Huang Wei has compared the opportunity cost and direct cost in detail, mainly focusing on the opportunity cost. But in reality, these costs are not the whole story. Housework, for example, can actually be a bigger cost for gender differences. According to some available data, a large number of women participate in the labour market, but their domestic work at home has not decreased. At this point we will see a gender difference, with women costing much more than men.
Secondly, we only discussed the cost of having a child, without taking into account the benefits of having a child. Since women go to great lengths to choose to have children, it is clear that this choice will bring us benefits. This benefit is not only good for the women themselves, but also for the men and the family as a whole. How big is this kind of benefit, including the investment to meet the current consumption needs and the future of raising children and preventing old age, as well as enjoying the current life of family happiness and family happiness. These benefits are difficult to measure, and it would be more comprehensive to include them in the assessment if possible.
Finally, there's another caveat that even if we talk about costs, we usually only think about current costs, but the benefits could be decades in the future. Therefore, when calculating costs, if you really want to calculate the cost-benefit, you need to take into account different time constraints. Of course, since our focus is on the differences between men and women, it can also be assumed that the benefits are not much different for men and women. Because both father and mother can enjoy family fun, raising children to prevent old age after old age also refers to adoptive parents, not just adoptive mothers. If the benefits are available to both men and women, then even assessing the difference in costs is particularly worth paying attention to.
Finishing: Wang Xianqing.
Related Reading: Zhao Yaohui: Women's career and family choices.
Huang Wei: The cost of childbirth in China.
*Playback】Zhao Yaohui + Lei Xiaoyan + Huang Wei: 2023 Nobel Prize, Labor Economics and Modern Women's Development.