Population Research

Satisfaction of Fertility Desires for Couples of Childbearing Age and the Effect of Family Characteristics: An Empirical Study Based on the Three dimension Fertility Perspective

Song Jian, Chen Wenqi

2022, 46(5): 3-18.

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The deviation between fertility desires and behaviors is common among Chinese people of childbearing age. Little attention has been paid to the satisfaction of fertility desires from gender and time dimensions and its determinants. Based on data from the 2021 national sample survey conducted by the Center for Population and Development Studies of Renmin University of China, this paper analyzes the satisfaction of fertility desires and the effect of family characteristics from three dimensions. The results show that more than half of the couples of childbearing age want to have children but failed to meet their desired number; forty percent failed to satisfy the desired sex; more than eighty percent did not meet the desired time with a later age of childbearing than the desired timing. The socioeconomic status and fertility potential of family play an important role in satisfying the desired number for all the couples. The effect of family fertility culture is not significant. The couples with unsatisfied sex preference tend to have more children to fulfill it. It is suggested to make precise policies for different types of couples of childbearing age to help them meet their fertility desires.

Does Postponing Retirement Inhibit Fertility?An Intergenerational Parenting Perspective

Chen Youhua, Cui Xiaodong, Zhao Tong

2022, 46(5): 19-32.

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China has a strong intergenerational parenting culture, but there is no consensus on whether delaying retirement will inhibit fertility by crowding out intergenerational parenting time. By constructing an intertemporal iterative model of endogenous fertility, intergenerational parenting and pension burden related to delayed retirement are introduced to analyze and simulate the sequential game process of retirement age and fertility under the goal of maximizing individual utility. Under the pay-asyou-go system, retirement age and fertility have an inverted U-shaped relationship; under the fund accumulation system, there is a monotonically increasing relationship. Fertility supporting measures can delay the inflection point of the retirement age, thereby expanding the space for the parallel alignment of the two policy goals of delaying retirement and encouraging fertility, and increasing fertility when the peak is reached, but will not change the relationship between the two. Thus, it is the appropriate time now to introduce a delayed retirement policy, which not only has less negative impact on fertility, but also improves individual utility, but should adopt a gradual postponement approach and pay careful attention to its possible negative effects.

The Impact of Childcare Services on Female Labor Participation and Economic Output

Qu Yue, Cheng Jie, Li Bingbing

2022, 46(5): 33-47.

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Early childhood education and care (ECEC) hinders women's labor market participation and career development, causing potential economic losses. The socialization of childcare services maybe a viable way to release female labor force. This article uses the national population and family dynamic monitoring survey data to examine the relationship between childcare burden, childcare behavior and women's performance in the labor market, explore the impact of childcare services on women's employment and income, and estimate the extent to which the childcare service system can promote female labor participation, which in turn lead to income improvement and economic growth. The results show that the childcare burden has significantly reduced the labor participation rate and income level of women. The socialization of childcare services can increase the labor participation rate of women by 2-3 percentage points, and the released labor supply and economic output account for 4-7 percent of the current total economic output of women. The comprehensive construction of the childcare service system for children aged 0-3 is an effective measure to promote gender equality and economic development, and an important policy to enhance human capital, promote labor participation, and actively respond to population ageing.

Maternal Preferences for Infant Care in the Era of Promoting the Availability of Child Care Resources:A Best-Worst Scaling Analysis

Gao Chenzhuo, Yang Xueyan, Li Hua

2022, 46(5): 48-62.

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When policymakers design child care policies, it is important to know maternal preferences for child care. Based on survey data collected in Nanjing, Wuhan, and Xi'an city, this research uses Best-Worst Scaling to explore maternal preferences for infant care. Results show that non-parental care is commonly used by mothers when they raise young children. There is a high demand for child care services. Mothers place more value on quality-oriented child care characteristics than practical-oriented child care characteristics. They believe that the most important characteristic of child care is to create a safe and loving caring environment. Maternal preferences for child care characteristics are significantly related to their child care choices. Mothers who value the accessibility of child care resources and caregivers' skills of early education and feeding tend to choose child care services. Thus, policymakers should pay more attention to both the quantity and quality of child care resources.

Motherhood Penalty on Chinese Women in Labor Market

Yang Fan, He Yuchen

2022, 46(5): 63-77.

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Using China Family Panel Study ( CFPS) data from 2010 to 2018 and an event-study framework, we explore the impacts of children on the dynamic trajectory of female labor force participation and hours worked. The results show that the arrival of the first child creates a sudden and substantial decrease in the employment and monthly hours worked. The impacts sustain until the child is 4 years old. Within 0 - 3 years after the birth of the first child the employment and the monthly hours worked decreased significantly. Nevertheless, after 4 years beyond the birth of the first child, there is no statistical difference in the employment and monthly hours worked compared with the pre-birth stage. Compared with women, there is no significant impact of children on the labor supply for men.Meanwhile, we provide evidence that the motherhood penalties on labor supply are following the law of diminishing marginal cost. We end with the heterogeneity analyses which show that the college-educated and younger cohorts experience smaller labor supply declines. This study helps understand the magnitude and dynamic trajectory of motherhood penalties in China and provides illumination for the family policy to help women balance family and work and families realize their fertility intention from a perspective of international comparison.

Early Life course Development and Social Mobility in China

Liu Airan, Li Wangyang, Xie Yu

2022, 46(5): 78-90.

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Social stratification and mobility comprises an important field of social demography and population studies. Understanding social stratification and mobility hinges on knowledge of early lifecourse (ages 0-18) development—its patterns and causes.Unfortunately, demographic research in China has only made limited efforts to examine early life-course development from the perspective of social stratification and mobility as of yet, partly due to lacking a comprehensive conceptual framework for guidance. To address this issue, we propose a two-level and multi-factor theoretical framework based on the existing literature. Two-level refers to the macro level and the micro level. Multi-factor refers to the numerous influential factors affecting early-life development, which broadly fall into two categories: social and economic. This study contributes to population research by providing a comprehensive roadmap and guidance for future research on early-life development in China.

The Impacts of Social Software Usage on Social Networks of Mid aged and Older Adults

Xie Lili, Yang Lu, Hu Bo, Wang Fei

2022, 46(5): 91-103.

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Using data from a survey on the use of online social tools by mid-aged and older adults in 2021, this paper investigates the relationships between the variety, relationship types, and activity level of online communities, and social networks of mid-aged and older adults by using the structural equation modeling. The study found that the mid-aged and older adults had better relationships with their relatives and friends as the variety of online communities increased. Strong and sub-strong tie groups could promote family and friend networks, respectively, while sub-weak and weak tie groups could promote both types of networks. Moreover, the higher the activity in the online communities, the greater the promotion of their friend networks. Findings promote the understanding of changes in the social network in the internet era. Online communities break through the physical distance in the traditional differential mode of associations by enhancing family relations, strengthening and expanding friend relations horizontally, and helping restore interrupted friend relations vertically. The breadth and depth of the social network of mid-aged and older adults have been developed through online communities.

Dynamic Trend of China's Population Ageing and New Characteristics of the Elderly

Yang Hanmo

2022, 46(5): 104-116.

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Based on the 7th National Population Census conducted in 2020 and previous censuses,this study analyzes the current situation and the dynamic trend of China's population ageing. This study first describes the health status, sources of livelihood, living arrangement, and marital status of the older population in general, and summarizes the characteristics of China's population ageing: The speed and depth of China's ageing process have been further strengthened, and the proportion of the elderly population in rural areas becomes higher. From 2010 to 2020, the self-assessed health status of the older people has improved, yet the gap between urban and rural areas is still significant; the proportion of widowed persons among the older people has declined, and the relative proportion of widowed persons is higher in rural areas and among women than their counterparts; the elderly security system is further improved, and the older people are more economically independent with less economic pressure; the phenomenon of “empty nest” is common among rural older people; and those who are unhealthy or living alone are more likely to rely on assistance from the government.

Changing Housing Conditions in China

Sun Qing

2022, 46(5): 117-128.

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Data from the 7th National Population Census suggest that housing conditions in China have continued to improve in the past decade. The per capita housing area of urban residents has reached the standard of living of a comprehensive well-off society. The household residential pattern,used to be dominated by two-generation households, has now featured by a dichotomy between onegeneration households and multi-generation households, and the proportion of buying commercial houses and renting other houses has increased significantly. The housing conditions in China's western and northeastern regions have both greatly improved, and the regional disparity has narrowed. However,the urban-rural gap in housing conditions has been changing that the gap in housing facilities narrowing, while the gap in per capita housing area widening. While differentials in housing sources exist,differences by occupation in urban areas tend to narrow.

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