Familial and Gender Attitudes in East Asia: The Influence of Modernization in Cross-societal Perspective

• In Event: 1283 - Section on the Sociology of the Family Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 07. Housework, Gender, and Related Attitudes

Abstract

Using data from the 2012 International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) fourth module on family and changing gender roles we explore cross-national differences in the prevalence of non-traditional attitudes towards family and gender roles in China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. Specifically, we examine attitudes towards cohabitation, impact of women’s work on the family, homosexual parenting, and single parenting using a sample of adults (N = 10,579). We test hypotheses related to post-materialism and secularization theories. Our results are most consistent with secularization, in that less religious service attendance is generally associated with holding a more non-traditional attitude. Results are less consistent with post-materialism, which we consider both in the aggregate and at the individual level. Similarities across these societies aside, we also speculate that path-dependent or societal-specific differences across contexts could be important in explaining cross-national differences that we observe.

Authors

• Martin Piotrowski, University of Oklahoma

• Rob Clark, University of Oklahoma

• Yuying Tong, Chinese University of Hong Kong

• Wyatt Scmitz, University of Oklahoma

• Kumiko Shibuya, Chinese University of Hong Kong