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Women’s Entry into Self-employment in Urban China: The Role of Family in Creating Gendered Mobility Patterns

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  • Zhang, Qian Forrest
  • Pan, Zi

Abstract

How did family characteristics affect women and men differently in self-employment participation in urban China? Analyses of national data show dual marriage penalties for women. Marketization made married women more vulnerable to lay-offs from state-sector jobs; their likelihood of being pushed into unskilled self-employment surpassed that of any other groups. The revitalized patriarchal family tradition favored men in family businesses and resulted in their higher rates of entering entrepreneurial self-employment. Married women who had the education to pursue entrepreneurial self-employment were constrained by family responsibilities to state-sector jobs for access to family services, and had much lower rates in entering self-employment.

Suggested Citation

  • Zhang, Qian Forrest & Pan, Zi, 2012. "Women’s Entry into Self-employment in Urban China: The Role of Family in Creating Gendered Mobility Patterns," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(6), pages 1201-1212.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:40:y:2012:i:6:p:1201-1212
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2011.11.004
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Xiaoling Shu & Yifei Zhu & Zhanxin Zhang, 2007. "Global Economy and Gender Inequalities: The Case of the Urban Chinese Labor Market," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 88(5), pages 1307-1332, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Xinxin Ma & Shi Li, 2022. "Self‐employment in Urban China: Entrepreneurship or Disguised Unemployment?," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 30(1), pages 166-195, January.
    2. Barnett, William A. & Hu, Mingzhi & Wang, Xue, 2019. "Does the utilization of information communication technology promote entrepreneurship: Evidence from rural China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 141(C), pages 12-21.
    3. Björn Gustafsson & Haiyuan Wan, 2018. "Wage growth and inequality in urban China: 1988–2013," WIDER Working Paper Series 163, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    4. Hu, Mingzhi & Su, Yinxin & Ye, Wenping, 2019. "Promoting or inhibiting: The role of housing price in entrepreneurship," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 148(C).

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