Dyadic Employment Dynamics: Gender Differences in How Spousal Employment Influences Multiple Job Holding in China

• In Event: 50220 - Section on Organizations, Occupations, and Work Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 17: Careers, Work, and Family

Abstract

This study adopts an interactional approach to examine gender differences in how spousal employment influences multiple job holding (MJH)—defined as holding two or more concurrent jobs—among married couples in China. Although MJH has emerged as a critical form of non-standard employment alongside the rise of platform and gig economies, existing research has not clarified how spousal employment shapes MJH decisions in gender-specific ways—particularly in non-Western contexts.

Using dyadic data from the 2020 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS2020, 8,628 heterosexual married couples), we employ multinomial logistic regressions and interaction terms to assess the influence of spousal employment status and job characteristics on individual MJH decisions. Our findings reveal significant gender differences in spousal effects and how these effects vary across life course stages (measured by the youngest child’s age), hukou status, and family income. Specifically, traditional breadwinning norms lead men to pursue MJH when their wives engage in MJH or secure stable and well-paid state-sector jobs, whereas women tend to hold multiple jobs in response to heightened family financial needs, particularly when husbands are out of workforce or unemployed. Additionally, spouse MJH status increases one’s likelihood of MJH when children are school-aged (6-18 years) but has no significant effects on MJH decisions during early childcare years (0-5 years). Structural factors further stratify outcomes, with rural hukou holders exhibiting stronger gendered patterns.

By contextualizing MJH within China’s hukou system and cultural norms like familism, this study challenges individual-centric analyses of labor decisions and underscores the importance of marital dynamics and gendered interactions. These insights inform policies aimed at promoting gender equity in non-standard work and enhancing household economic resilience. Further analyses will employ Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM) modeling to further assess mutual influences and gendered dynamics within couples’ labor market outcomes.

Authors

• Xiao Li, Xiamen University, China

• HONG ZHANG, Sun Yat-sen Unviersity

• Tingyu Sun, Sun Yat-Sen University