Enduring Values: Density of Genealogy and Son Preference Across Modern China

• In Event: 50260 - Section on Asia and Asian America Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table 9: Reproductive Norms, Practices, and Politics in Contemporary Asia

Abstract

This study examines the enduring influence of social capital and family ties on son preference in China, revealing how traditional values persist despite modernizing influences. Utilizing data from the China General Social Survey (CGSS) 2006 and the Chinese Genealogy Dataset (CGD) by the Shanghai Library, we apply multinomial logistic regression to analyze the relationships between son preference and the number of genealogies being documented per million people at the county level. Our preliminary findings suggest that a greater density of genealogies is associated with a stronger son preference at the individual level. To better examine the effect of genealogy density, we will employ multilevel modeling to further control for factors that may affect people’s son preference at individual, family, and community levels. We will also include the gender and age composition of children as an objective measure of son preference to confirm the effect of genealogy.

Authors

• Xiaoxu Yang, Louisiana State University

• Hope Xu Yan, Louisiana State University