Social

Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Science
RESEARCH
www.elsevier.com/locate/ssresearch

The division of labor between generations

of women in rural China
Feinian Chen
Department of Sociology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77845-4351, USA
Available online 26 November 2003

Abstract

Using the 1993 wave of the China Health and Nutrition Survey, I examine the work arrange-
ment of coresiding mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law in rural China. The analyses suggest
that work activities of daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law are not independent of each other,
but rather reflect a coordination of activities. I use the typology of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work
to describe the intergenerational work arrangement, which was used to depict traditional gen-
der division of labor in China. In addition to the effect of individual resources and local labor
market conditions, multivariate analysis documents that the division of labor between the gen-
erations of women is a type of family strategy as well as a result of power dynamics in the house-
hold. For example, the intergenerational division of labor responds to family needs, such as
childcare demands, with the mother-in-law more likely to adjust her work activities than the
daughter-in-law. The results also indicate that the work arrangement tends to favor the daugh-
ter-in-law the closer her natal kin lives. Analyses on housework arrangements also suggest that
the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law share housework responsibilities.
Ó 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction

Patriarchy, in most general terms, is known as a social system supporting the

domination of women by men. Its manifestation in different historical, social, and
economic settings is examined extensively by sociologists. Examples of empirical re-
search in gender inequalities in recent years include studies on occupational segrega-
tion in the labor market, the gender gap in income, or the unequal share of
housework by husbands and wives in different societies (Anker, 1998; Charles,

E-mail address: feinian_chen@tamu.edu.

0049-089X/$ - see front matter Ó 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2003.09.005
558 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

1992; Kamo, 1994; Trappe and Rosenfeld, 2000; Tsuya and Bumpass, 1998). Natu-
rally, the focus on gender stratification, or the socially constructed relationships be-
tween women and men, is central to the study of patriarchy. Nonetheless, in some
contexts, to achieve a better understanding of patriarchy, it is also essential to exam-
ine the socially constructed relationships between women. In this paper, I decipher
patriarchy from a unique angle, by focusing on the relationship between generations
of women, i.e., mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, in contemporary rural China.
Indeed, the significance of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship
could be traced back to historical China, a patriarchal, patrilineal, and patrilocal soci-
ety. Although by definition patriarchy is a social arrangement upholding the subordi-
nation of women by men, the direct oppression of women in daily life actually came
from other women, namely, the mother-in-law. She was ‘‘the patriarchÕs female deputy
in the Chinese family’’ (Stacey, 1983, p. 54), an immediate supervisor of obedience and
service from the daughter- in-law. This was largely reinforced by segregation of women
and men into different spheres in historical China: ‘‘outside’’ for men and ‘‘inside’’ for
women (Nan Zhu Wai, Nu Zhu Nei). This historically conflictual relationship between
the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was closely examined by some China scholars,
who provided important insights into womenÕs power struggle, survival strategies,
and how they were ultimately shaped by, and simultaneously supported the patriarchal
social order (Johnson, 1983; Judd, 1994; Wolf, 1972).
As the patriarchal culture eroded over time, so did the authority of the mother-in-
law. Today, although the patrilineal and patrilocal extended family continues to exist
as an important family form in China, the nature of the relationship between daugh-
ters-in-law and mothers-in-law within the household has been largely transformed.
While the role of the mother-in-law as a deputy patriarch has evaporated, patriarchy
as a social system is far from reaching its demise. In this paper, by examining the di-
vision of labor between the generations of women and contrasting it with gender di-
vision of labor in contemporary rural China, I examine the legacy of patriarchy from
the female stance. I argue that the adjustments that the mother-in-law and daughter-
in-law make in their work arrangements are indeed responses to changes in gender
division of labor and do not alter the foundation of patriarchy.
In times past, the traditional division of labor between women and men in China
was ‘‘men working outside and women working inside.’’ Agricultural fieldwork was
considered menÕs profession and women were engaged in domestic activities such as
weaving or spinning (Ebrey, 1993; Mann, 2000; Walker, 1993). The situation was not
much changed until after the communist revolution in 1949, when the government
started to actively promote womenÕs participation in agricultural fieldwork (Croll,
1983; Gao, 1994). Since the economic reform in 1979, researchers noted a phenom-
enon known as the ‘‘feminization of agriculture,’’ with women now more likely to
engage in agricultural work in rural China, and with men seeking new economic op-
portunities outside of agriculture, either in the village or places far away (Croll, 1983;
Jacka, 1997; Wolf, 1985).
Such changes in the gender division of labor have implications for the intergener-
ational division of labor between women. As I will elaborate later in the paper, the
division of labor between the generations of women in rural China has come to mir-
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 559

ror the traditional gender division of labor, ‘‘outside’’ vs. ‘‘inside’’ work, with the
daughter-in-law working in the field, or in the non-agricultural wage sector if oppor-
tunities exist, and with the mother-in-law engaging in the domestic sideline activities
which are largely household-based. Mothers-in-law can be considered ‘‘filling in’’ for
daughters-in-law, just as daughters-in-law are ‘‘filling in’’ for men. I view specializa-
tion in different work tasks as a manifestation of the division of labor between the
generations. For example, in a rural household, a more educated daughter-in-law
may have a wage job, and the mother-in-law may engage in an agricultural sideline,
such as gardening or animal husbandry. Or, it could be that the daughter-in-law does
agricultural fieldwork while the mother-in-law stays at home, mainly responsible for
domestic sidelines and housework.
I address three main research questions in the paper. The first is descriptive: to
what extent do the work arrangements of coresiding daughters-in-law and moth-
ers-in-law mirror the traditional gender division of labor? The question indeed has
two components. First, do we perceive a coordination of work activities between
the generations? Second, if so, how do we describe the nature of the coordination?
I use the rural sample of the 1993 China Health and Nutrition Survey in the study.
I first test hypotheses regarding coordination of activities between the generations,
and then evaluate whether it is reasonable to describe the intergenerational division
of labor using the dichotomy of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work. Since the household is
the basic production unit in rural China, I hypothesize that the two generations of
women do coordinate their work activities. The second main research question I
ask is: what are potential contributors to the intergenerational division of labor? I
argue that the work activities of both generations are not choices made indepen-
dently, but instead, the arrangement is an outcome that responds to family needs,
reflects power differences and depends on individual resources. I use a set of multi-
nomial logit models to assess the impact of these different factors on intergenera-
tional work arrangements. Finally, I briefly examine housework arrangements
between the generations of women.

2. Background

The relationship between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law was notoriously

conflictual in China. Explanations were numerous, ranging ‘‘from the belief (com-
mon in China) that women are naturally quarrelsome to the only slightly more so-
phisticated one that mothers-in-law mistreat their daughters-in-law because they
themselves were mistreated—a sort of hydraulic balance theory. Another theory
holds that two women in one kitchen produce competition. . .’’(Wolf, 1985, p.
212). While these homespun explanations have some truth in them, they are indeed
superficial. If we review the history of family relations in China, we will find that the
conflictual relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law has deep his-
torical and cultural roots. Likewise, shifts in the intergenerational division of labor
are not random changes, but closely linked with changes in the gender division of
labor and socioeconomic changes in the society.
560 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Traditional Chinese family relations were characterized by patrilineality and patril-

ocality. Marriages were arranged by parents and were mostly exogamous. After mar-
riage, the daughter-in-law had to serve her husband, in-laws and children, and had the
lowest status in a family (Chen, 1916; Fei, 1939). Women were excluded from public
life and their activities were largely constrained to the house and courtyard. Conse-
quently, while the male head of the family was the ultimate authority in the family
and made all important decisions in the household, the mother-in-law was the one
who directly supervised service and activities of the daughters in-law (Stacey, 1983;
Yao, 1983). The subordination of the daughter-in-law by the mother-in-law was rein-
forced by Confucian ideology, which prescribed a gender hierarchy with its doctrines
of separate spheres (Bray, 1997; Ko, 1994; Walker, 1993). For a proper daughter-in-
law, daily activities mostly involved interaction with the mother-in-law and other wo-
men in the house (Li, 1986). It was no exaggeration to say that the mother-in-law and
daughter-in-law relationship was more important than the conjugal relationship in
China. Margery Wolf (1972) provided an interesting account of the mother-in-law
and daughter-in-law relationship by using the concept of ‘‘uterine family,’’ which is
centered around women, and in which women nurture families of their own descen-
dants and compete with other women in the household for their respective interests.
The gender division of labor paralleled the separation of women and men into two
spaces, ‘‘inside’’ (nei) and ‘‘outside’’ (wai). Historically, men worked outside and wo-
men worked inside, epitomized in the phrase ‘‘men plowing, women weaving’’
(Mann, 2000; Walker, 1993). In Chinese history, women were always expected to
work. Although their role was secondary to menÕs, their work involvement was es-
sential to the success of a family. Their work activities not only included domestic
chores and childcare, but also work such as weaving, spinning, and sericulture (Li,
1992). WomenÕs role in farming was ideally prohibited. Agricultural fieldwork was
regarded as menÕs work and of highest importance (Mann, 2000). That it was im-
proper for women to do farm work was supported partly by Confucian ideology
and also by popular superstitions (Jacka, 1997). In reality, women in some areas, de-
pending on regions and seasons, e.g., the rice region in the South, were indeed in-
volved in agricultural fieldwork (Buck, 1956). Also, some had to work in the fields
out of necessity, e.g., widowhood (Hershatter, 2000). But still, women could not
own land and their role in farm work was generally small. They were more likely
to engage in subsidiary work, such as tea processing, hog and poultry raising, weav-
ing, basket making and other handicrafts, also known as the courtyard economy,
because they typically take place in the courtyard of the household (Davin, 1976).
The division of labor inside the house between the generations was definitely not
equal. Daughters-in-law shouldered most of the responsibilities. Her other responsi-
bilities include caring of children, cooking, sewing, and cleaning, and most impor-
tantly serving needs of the in-laws, especially the mother-in-law (Chao, 1983; Shi,
1987). Nowadays, it seems normative for paternal grandmothers to serve as alterna-
tive childcare givers (Judd, 1994). There is no evidence supporting such a norm in
historical China. Childcare was strictly the motherÕs responsibility, not the grand-
motherÕs. The duty of a daughter-in-law was to serve her mother-in-law and alleviate
her burden, rather than the other way around.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 561

Both family relations and the division of labor have changed considerably from
historical times, especially after the communist revolution in 1949. One of the major
objectives of the communist government was to improve womenÕs status and to free
them from the shackles of patriarchy. A series of policies served such purposes. The
1950 marriage law made arranged marriages illegal, gradually lessening the control
of parents over children. Until early 20th century rural China, womenÕs and menÕs
work was still largely constructed and maintained between the ‘‘inside’’ and ‘‘out-
side’’ spheres (Jacka, 1997). Such a situation was changed after the communist rev-
olution in 1949. Governmental policies followed EngelÕs argument that womenÕs
emancipation depended on their involvement in non-domestic production. Propa-
ganda was dominated by the expressions such as ‘‘women hold up half of the
sky,’’ ‘‘Things men can do, women also can do’’ (Honig, 2000). In the 1950s, land
reform and collectivization removed labor and production decisions away from
the household for the first time. As a result, womenÕs participation in agricultural
fieldwork increased significantly, from 20–40% in 1950 to 70% of adult rural women
in 1957 (Gao, 1994; Jacka, 1997). However, the gender division of labor between
‘‘inside’’ and ‘‘outside’’ work remained largely unchallenged in that domestic work
remained womenÕs responsibility (Jacka, 1997).
How did the intergenerational division of labor change? As the younger and phys-
ically more able daughters-in-law were entering the agricultural labor force in large
numbers, their new economic role, together with a much improved relationship with
the husband, shifted the balance of power between the generations (Dai, 1991; Yao,
1983). Interestingly, in the 1980s, the media began to focus on the disrespectful be-
havior of daughters-in-law rather than abusive mothers-in-law, a sharp contrast to
the early 1950s (Honig and Hershatter, 1988). Undoubtedly, such a change in the
power relationship between daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law had consequences
for the division of labor between the generations (Wolf, 1985). Instead of expecting
daughters-in-law to do everything, mothers-in-law were increasingly responsible for
large chunks of domestic work and childcare, enabling daughters-in-law to partici-
pate fully in the labor market. The change was best described by Wolf (1985, p.
225) ‘‘In times past, a mother-in-lawÕs burden was alleviated by the corps of daugh-
ters-in-law who were expected to cook her meals, bring her tea, and do her bidding,
but now with their new role in agriculture, she must have their meals ready on their
return from work as well as those of menfolk.’’
The economic reforms launched in 1978 revitalized ChinaÕs economy and brought
unprecedented opportunities to men and women in rural China. First, the commune
system was overturned and the household responsibility system returned agricultural
production to the household (Gao, 1994; Jacka, 1997). Second, outside agriculture,
newly established enterprises provided more profitable wage jobs. Third, the private
economic sector expanded through household businesses (getihu) and private enter-
prises (Entwisle et al., 1995). Whereas some argued that market transitions would
help to reduce gender inequality (Michelson and Parish, 2000; Nee, 1989, 1996), wo-
men were still disadvantaged considerably in the labor market. For instance, rural
men are disproportionately represented in the wage sector, while ironically, women
now are over-represented in agricultural fieldwork, the former preserve of men
562 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

(Jacka, 1997). The phenomenon was referred as the feminization of agriculture.

While men seek more lucrative opportunities, women, married women in particular,
are left behind to fill in for agricultural fieldwork (Croll, 1983; Gao, 1994; Yang,
2000).
What then happens to the intergenerational division of labor between daughters-
in-law and mothers-in-law? Since the household is again a basic production unit, co-
ordination of activities among family members becomes necessary. I hypothesize
that the intergenerational division of labor between women mirrors the traditional
sexual division of labor: ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside.’’ ‘‘Outside’’ work refers to both agri-
cultural fieldwork and wage jobs. ‘‘Inside’’ work refers to domestic chores, childcare,
and sideline activities. As new economic opportunities arise, men are the first to take
advantage of them and leave less desirable jobs to women. For instance, as men take
up wage jobs in local enterprises or in cities, women begin to shoulder much of the
responsibilities for agricultural fieldwork. Who is then responsible for ‘‘inside’’
work? Rather than men adjusting, the adjustment occurs among women living in
the same household. It was the sharing of ‘‘inside’’ work that shifted between the
generations. This is a continuing trend from earlier decades when women joined
the agricultural work force in large numbers. As more new economic opportunities
were created, and as the household was restored as a production unit after the eco-
nomic reform, the need for collaboration of work activities among family members
has never been stronger.
To see whether the typology of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work is useful to describe the
intergenerational division of labor, first, I attempt to empirically establish that the
work activities of the coresiding mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are not indepen-
dent of each other, using the 1993 China Nutrition and Health Survey. Second, I use
the dichotomy of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work to re-categorize the work patterns and
examine to what extent the intergenerational division of labor exists in different house-
holds. Obviously, work arrangements between the two generations of women may vary
from one family to the other. In some families, mothers-in-law take charge of sideline
work, domestic work and child care while the daughters-in-law mostly work ‘‘outside.’’
In other families the younger women may undertake domestic work and domestic side-
lines alongside the mothers-in-law. It could also be that both the mother-in-law and
daughter-in-law share ‘‘outside’’ and ‘‘inside’’ work together. Third, I examine possible
determinants of the work arrangements. Finally, I focus the research lens on specific
housework activities of the two generations of women. Is there a role reversal in that
mothers-in-law are now performing most of the housework, or do mothers-in-law
and daughters-in-law share responsibilities for housework?

3. Work arrangements between the generations: evidence from the China health and
nutrition survey

The China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) provides an excellent tool to ex-
amine the intergenerational division of labor. It is a longitudinal panel survey of
households in eight provinces of China: Guangxi; Guizhou; Henan; Hubei; Hunan;
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 563

Jiangsu; Liaoning; and Shandong. The survey began in 1989 and represented an on-
going collaboration between researchers at the Carolina Population Center at the
University of North Carolina and researchers at the Chinese Academy of Preventive
Medicine in Beijing.1
The CHNS made use of a multistage cluster design. The provinces span a range of
characteristics, although they were not selected according to a probability design.
Three of the provinces are coastal; three are in central China; and two are mountain-
ous southern provinces. Their population together accounts for roughly a third of
ChinaÕs population and varies substantially in level of economic development. For
the analyses in this paper, I use the 1993 wave of the data.
The CHNS data are extremely detailed in terms of their coverage of work activ-
ities. For each household member, information was collected on wage work, agricul-
tural fieldwork, and sideline activities such as gardening, animal husbandry, and
small businesses. Previous studies on the gender division of labor in developing
countries often focused on the distinction of agricultural vs. non-agricultural work
(Alva, 1999; Cook, 1998; Parish et al., 1995). Agricultural work can encompass a va-
riety of work activities, however, ranging from labor-intensive fieldwork to relatively
light and home-based work such as gardening. A dichotomy along the line of agri-
cultural vs. non-agricultural work will put these distinctively different work activities
into the same category and may fail to detect a pattern of division of labor among
household members if it exists. The detailed work activities recorded in CHNS allow
for a closer look at work activities and coordination among household members.
The CHNS covered about 2200 rural households. Around 16% of those are pat-
rilineal extended families, suggesting lingering patrilocal tradition in China. Restrict-
ing my sample to these patrilineal extended families, I have 351 households with
daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law pairs.2 The number may seem low, but is in-
deed expected, since the majority of older persons have more than one child and
rarely live with all the children at the same time. For example, the 1990 Census sug-
gested that around 27% of the households contained three generations (Guo, 2000).
However, if viewed from the parental perspective, as high as 72.5% of the population
aged 65 and above lived in households made up of two generations, or three or more
generations (Guo, 2000). The proportional size of the achieved CHNS sample is
comparable to the published Census figures, although it is understandably lower be-
cause I include only patrilineal stem families and because fertility was higher in rural
China (bigger denominator). In spite of its relatively small sample size, given the
probability sampling design of the CHNS (multistage cluster sample), the represen-
tativeness of the sample is not affected (Singleton, 1993). Certainly, smaller sample
size is associated with larger sampling error. I adjusted for the sample design effect
in the analyses (see points made in Section 7).

1
The response rate for the 1989 survey was as high as 99%. Fewer than 5% of households were lost to
follow-up in 1991 and 1993.
2
There are 17 households with two daughters-in-law living in the household together with the family,
the true form of an extended family, with brothers living together with parents. I exclude them in my
sample, because the dynamics within these families are quite different.
564 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Fig. 1. Gender difference in work patterns (CHNS 1993).

Coresidence with parents is obviously not a random choice, and involves decisions
which may be related to work arrangements and the needs of either generation. In
other words, family needs could have both a direct and an indirect effect on the di-
vision of labor, with the latter being mediated through decisions on living arrange-
ments. I do not make a distinction between the effects in this paper. In a separate
paper (Chen, 2001), I examined the residential patterns of parents and their married
children and found that coresidence with parents followed a life course pattern, re-
sponding to changes in the needs of parents and children alike. Thus, the formation
of an extended household as well as work arrangements within the household can
both be seen as components of a family decision making process that intends to pro-
mote the well being of the family and its family members. The analyses in this paper
help to document another part of the story.
Using information on work activities in the CHNS, I classified women into five
major groups: (1) those who engage in wage work,3 (2) those who engage in both ag-
ricultural fieldwork and sideline activities, (3) those who engage in agricultural field-
work but not in sideline activities, (4) those who engage in sideline activities only,
and (5) those who are involved in no income generating work. All categories are mu-
tually exclusive. Sideline activities can be gardening, or handcrafting or raising poul-
try or having a small family grocery shop. It is important to distinguish between
agricultural fieldwork and sideline activities. Although they can be both agricultural
farm work in nature, agricultural fieldwork is traditionally menÕs work and physi-
cally more demanding while sideline activities are home-based and traditionally con-
sidered womenÕs work.
Fig. 1 shows the distribution of men and womenÕs work patterns based on 1993
CHNS data. There is still some legacy of the tradition, ‘‘men working outside,

3
Note that some of those who engage in wage work also engage in agricultural work or sidelines. But
the percent is low, 6% for daughters-in-law and 2% for mothers-in-law. Thus, I did not list it as a separate
category.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 565

Fig. 2. Intergenerational difference in work patterns (CHNS 1993).

women working inside.’’ For example, men are more than twice as likely to have a
wage job or to do agricultural fieldwork (exclusively) as women. At the same time,
women are twice as likely as men to be sideliners and homemakers. We also see some
departing trend from such tradition. For instance, women are more likely to com-
bine fieldwork with sideline activities than men, lending some support to the femini-
zation of agriculture.
Fig. 2 presents the distribution of work activities of daughters-in-law and moth-
ers-in-law in each of these categories. This figure has a striking resemblance to Fig. 1,
with daughters-in-law taking up menÕs place and mothers-in-law taking up womenÕs
place. It is clear that the two generations are involved in different types of work
activities. A much higher proportion of daughters-in-law engage in wage work
and agricultural fieldwork than mothers-in-law, while mothers-in-law are dispropor-
tionately represented in the categories of sideliners and homemakers. Daughters-
in-law are three times as likely as mothers-in-law to be wage workers. In contrast,
almost 30% of the mothers-in-law are homemakers, whereas less than 5% of the
daughters-in-law are in that category. Not surprisingly, combining fieldwork and
sideline activities seems to be the typical work pattern for both the mother-in-law
and daughter-in-law, since they are the most common types of work activities in
rural China.

4. Coordination or independence?

Fig. 2 basically shows the marginal distributions of daughters-in-law and

mothers-in-lawÕs work activities and suggests that they tend to engage in different
566 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Table 1
Crosstabulation of daughters-in-lawÕs and mothers-in-lawÕs work patterns, CHNS 1993 (frequencies)
Daughter-in-law’s work Mother-in-law’s work patterns
patterns
Wage Fieldwork Fieldwork Sideline Homemaker Total
work and sideline
Wage work 13 22 1 15 22 73
Fieldwork and sideline 2 59 12 35 57 165
Fieldwork 0 30 8 7 7 52
Sideline 2 9 1 13 17 42
Homemaker 2 7 1 3 6 19
Total 19 127 23 73 109 351

activities. However, a difference in the marginal distributions is by no means proof of

association. It is possible that work patterns of each generation are solely determined
by their individual characteristics (e.g., age) or the same structural constraints (e.g.,
available wage jobs in the village). If this were true, then their patterns would be the
same as observed whether or not they live in the same household or not.
At a glance, a division of labor between the generations exists for many house-
holds (see Table 1). For example, for daughters-in-law who engage in wage work,
more than 80% (60 out of 73) of the mothers-in-law are engaged in other types of
work activities. For mothers-in-law who are homemakers, only 5% (103 out of
109) of the daughters-in-law are so. The largest overlap occurs in the ‘‘fieldwork
and sideline’’ category, with 59 (16.8% of the whole sample) of them ending up on
the main diagonal. Together, 25% of the sample (89 pairs) ends up on the main
diagonal. Overall, daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law are more likely to engage
in different activities than the same activities, suggesting a division of labor.
To formally test the hypothesis that mothers-in-law and daughters-in-lawÕs work
arrangements are not independent of each other, I used a series of loglinear models.4
The results (not shown) found association between work patterns of the generations
with marginal distributions fitted. However, the bivariate analysis does not provide
any specific explanation of what can possibly determine the work arrangement. A
multivariate analysis seems to be imperative at this point. By using a multivariate
model, I can distinguish possible structural factors from household factors, and con-
sequently parse out the influence of factors that determine individual work activities
from the impact of distinctive household characteristics on work arrangements. For
instance, how do age and education influence the division of labor between the gen-
erations? How do local labor market conditions impact on the work arrangements?
Both individual characteristics and labor market conditions play important roles in
determining work activities, which can sometimes precede decisions about work
arrangements. For instance, the age difference between the generations can be an
important explanation of why we observe different marginal distributions. Younger
and physically stronger women, daughters-in-law in this case, are certainly more

4
I tested four loglinear models, including a model of independence, a model of quasi-independence,
a model of symmetry and a model of quasi-symmetry. Results are available upon request.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 567

likely to engage in agricultural fieldwork. Also, a shortage of wage jobs locally can
possibly account for why the younger and more educated daughters-in-law have an
edge over their mothers-in-law. If those are the only significant effects, I could con-
clude that work activities of mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law are indeed inde-
pendent. Otherwise, if controlling for these effects I still find significant effects of
house dynamics, I can then safely conclude that coordination between the genera-
tions does exist, and I can identify what the possible determinants are.

5. Construction of the dependent variable using ‘‘inside vs. outside work’’ dichotomy

Before proceeding to the multivariate analysis, it is necessary to first clarify what

dependent variable to use. It is obviously not parsimonious to use the 25 cells in
Table 1 to describe the intergenerational division of labor. Based on a review of
the literature and results from the descriptive and loglinear analysis, I propose to
use the dichotomy of ‘‘inside vs. outside work’’ to construct the dependent variable.
‘‘Inside work’’ includes sideline activities or housework only. ‘‘Outside work’’ refers
to any wage work or agricultural fieldwork. The re-catogorization looks as follows:
1 (wage work), 2 (fieldwork and sideline), 3 (fieldwork) ! ‘‘outside work’’,
4 (sideliner), 5 (homemaker) ! ‘‘inside work’’
By partitioning the original tables into sub-tables, I statistically test for whether
collapsing the categories captures the original association in the table. The results
(not shown) suggested that combining ‘‘sideline activities’’ and ‘‘homemaker’’ into
inside work preserves the association well, with very little change in v2 statistics.
Combining the other categories into outside work, however, does lose information.
This is not unexpected, since wage work and agricultural work are indeed different
by nature. However, for my substantive interest, combining them into ‘‘outside
work’’ is fine, because wage work in rural China is largely dependent on the local
labor market, while my interest is mainly on household dynamics. Controlling for
local labor market conditions, both wage work and fieldwork represent work of
higher priority compared with household based sideline activities and housework
(Entwisle et al., 1994).
After the reconstruction, I came up with a four-category dependent variable (see
Table 2). Using the inside vs. outside work dichotomy, the dependent variable is con-
structed as such:

Table 2
Work arrangements of daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law using the ‘‘inside vs. outside work’’
dichotomy
Daughter-in-law Mother-in-law
Outside work Inside work
Outside work h3i 147(41.9%) h1i 141(40.7%)
Inside work h2i 22(6.3%) h4i 39(11.1%)
568 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

(1) daughter-in-law working outside, mother-in-law working inside;

(2) daughter-in-law working inside, mother-in-law working outside;
(3) both daughter-in-law and mother-in-law working outside;
(4) both daughter-in-law and mother-in-law working inside.
The distribution shows that 40.7% of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pairs
have a division of labor, with the daughter-in-law working outside and mother-in-law
working inside. The reverse type of the division of labor is much less common (6.3%).
About 42% of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pairs both work outside, the
most common category of all. What contributes to these different work arrangements
in different households? Why is there a division of labor in some households but not the
other? These questions set the goals for the multivariate analysis.

6. Research hypotheses regarding determinants of intergenerational division of labor

In the multivariate analysis of intergenerational division of labor, I test for two

hypotheses, which are not competing hypotheses, but rather complementary to each
other. The first hypothesis is based upon power bargaining theory, which posits that
the division of labor between household members is a result of a process of power
renegotiation. With older parentsÕ declining control over land, business, job training,
and marriage, the power to enforce patriarchal power for the parents (or parents-in-
law, from a daughter-in-lawÕs perspective) is diminishing. The diffusion of new values
through education and mass media has fueled the rise of individualism (Caldwell,
1976, 1982; Goode, 1970). The communist regimeÕs policies to promote gender
equality also acted as catalysts to which further undermined the power of the patri-
arch and traditional family authority such as the mother-in-law. Although the extent
to which the patriarchal power has declined at the societal level is hard to measure, it
is possible to examine relative power positions of the household members. I hypoth-
esize that, in extended households, the division of labor between the daughter-in-law
and mother-in-law depends on their relative power.
The other hypothesis is based upon rational choice theory, treating the household
as a decision making unit that makes choices to maximize family utility (Becker,
1981). While the intergenerational division of labor could be a result of power rene-
gotiation between generations, it could also be regarded as a re-expression and ad-
aptation of intergenerational ties for the purpose of maximizing household
welfare. Daughters-in-law are generally younger, physically stronger, and more ed-
ucated than their mothers-in-law. Therefore, it is more beneficial for the whole fam-
ily if the daughter-in-law is the one who goes to work in factories or does agricultural
fieldwork, and the mother-in-law stays at home to take care of children, to do house-
hold chores, or to combine them with the more flexible and lighter sideline activities
such as gardening. Thus, the division of labor between the generations may be re-
garded as a family strategy based upon the needs of the family and relative resources
of each family member.
These two processes do not have to be exclusive, but rather may coexist. I find the
concept of treating family as a ‘‘cooperative conflict’’ unit useful, where family mem-
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 569

bers care about each other and cooperate to improve the quality of life but also may
exhibit aspects of conflict, especially over the division of labor and income (Summer-
field, 1997). Although a decision on the division of labor may benefit the whole fam-
ily, it may not benefit particular individuals, since some jobs are more desirable than
others. Thus, the final decision may be the balance between an adaptive strategy and
a power bargaining process, reflecting both differences in individual resources as well
as household dynamics.

7. Methodology and variables

I use multinomial logistic regression to model work arrangements of the daughter-

in-law and mother-in-law pairs. The model can be written as follows:
 
PrðDij ¼ kÞ
LN ¼ aIij þ bHij þ cCij :
PrðDij ¼ lÞ
The dependent variable is the log odds that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law
pair in household i in community j is engaged in one type of work arrangement (k)
vs. the other type (l). Because the data were collected using a multistage cluster
design, conventional estimates of standard errors may not be accurate, since they
assume independence of observations. I use the Huber/White/sandwich estimator of
robust standard errors to adjust for clustering in the data. I use the statistical pro-
gram STATA (version 7.0) to implement multinomial logistic regression with robust
variance estimates for clustered data (StataCorp, 2001).
I include three groups of independent variables. Descriptive statistics for these
variables are presented in Table 3. I in the model stands for individual characteris-
tics, and measures of relative resources of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. I
use the age of the daughter-in-law, the education level of the daughter-in-law and
mother-in-law, and the difference in age and educational level between the mother-
in-law and daughter-in-law as indicators. The difference between education levels
in the two generations is striking. About 75% of mothers-in-law have not had any
formal education and only 4% of them have had some middle school education or
higher. In contrast, only 14% of the daughters-in-law have no education and more
than 35% of them have some middle school education or higher (See Table 3).
The statistics consistently reflect the effort of the communist government to actively
promote education since 1949 (Lavely et al., 1990). The variables serve two purposes.
First, they are important control variables. Earlier loglinear models indicate that the
work patterns of daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law could be due to individual or
structural factors, which can be unrelated to household characteristics. Age and ed-
ucation are obviously important determinants of work activities at the individual le-
vel. Second, age and education differences between the generations can also indicate
power difference.5

5
Because the goal of the analyses is not to test competing theories, I do not see it as problematic that
the same variables can be indicators for different constructs.
570 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Table 3
Descriptive statistics of the independent variables (N ¼ 304)
Variable Mean Std Dev
Age of daughter-in-law 30.543 7.878
Age of mother-in-law 60.500 11.183
Age difference between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law 29.957 6.942
Mother-in-law with no education 0.747 0.436
Mother-in-law with some primary school education 0.089 0.285
Mother-in-law completed primary school 0.125 0.331
(middle school education or more is the reference category) 0.039 0.195
Daughter-in-law with no education 0.145 0.352
Daughter-in-law with some primary school education 0.148 0.356
Daughter-in-law completed primary school 0.355 0.479
(middle school education or more is the reference category) 0.352 0.478
Daughter-in-law with greater education 0.773 0.420
Presence of children aged 0–6 in the household 0.651 0.477
Number of household members above age 6 5.293 1.355
Whether natal kin of daughter-in-law in the same county 0.786 0.411
Presence of father-in-law in the household 0.589 0.493
Whether the son heads the household 0.398 0.490
Percent of agricultural labor force in the community 61.707 24.998
Number of enterprises in the community >20 employees 17.077 22.535
Whether the community is a suburb or village (1 ¼ suburb) 0.211 0.408

H in the equation stands for household characteristics. First, I am interested in

the effect of childcare demand on the division of labor between the mother-in-law
and daughter-in-law. I use the presence of preschool children aged 0–6 in the house-
hold as a proxy for childcare needs. Earlier studies suggested that motherÕs work
patterns were not very responsive to childcare demands in China, and that grand-
mothers play an important role as alternative child caregivers (Chen et al., 2000;
Short et al., 2002). I also include household size as a control variable. I then include
variables indicating relative power positions of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-
law in the household. Since I do not have any direct measure of power, I use three
proxy variables. They are: whether the natal kin of the daughter-in-law lives in the
same county; whether the father-in-law is present in the household; and whether
the son heads the household. Close residence of the natal kin can increase the daugh-
ter-in-lawÕs status in the household. Even though the formal tie between the woman
and her family of origin was diminished after marriage in historical China, it was not
uncommon for her natal family to intervene or for the daughters to run back to her
‘‘motherÕs house’’ in cases of tensions or disputes (Parish and Whyte, 1978; Wolf,
1972). Therefore, the proximity of the natal kin has a deterring effect and can poten-
tially increase womenÕs bargaining power in the household. Studies by Dyson and
Moore (1983) and Morgan and Niraula (1995) in other patriarchal settings (India
and Nepal) also provided strong empirical evidence that proximity of the natal
kin and post-marital contact with natal kin provided women with more support
and resources, which consequently increased their autonomy and decision-making
power in the household. By similar logic, the presence of the father-in-law in the
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 571

household could mean more negotiating power for the mother-in-law. Although wo-
menÕs opinions were not generally valued in a traditional Chinese family, it was not
uncommon for the older woman (mother-in-law) to be regularly consulted by her
husband on some issues, or to secretly act under her influence in some matters
(Chao, 1983; Wolf, 1972). Her power was consequently greater through such maneu-
verability. In my sample, about 57% of the households have fathers-in-law living in
the house. The remainder have widowed mothers-in-law, since divorce is extremely
rare in China, especially for that age group. I hypothesize that those mothers-in-
law may be in a relatively powerless position compared with those whose husbands
are present. Another indicator I use is headship of the household. The CHNS asks
household members to self-identify whether they are the head of the household.
Households headed by daughters-in-law are rare. I use whether the son heads the
household as an indicator for relative power position. If the son heads the house-
hold, then it is likely that the division of labor may be in favor of his wife, the daugh-
ter-in-law. If the mother-in-law or father-in-law heads the household, then it is likely
that the mother-in-law is favored.
Finally, I include community level variables, represented by C in the model. I use
percent of agricultural labor force in the community and number of enterprises with
more than 20 employees as indicators of local labor market demand. China is cur-
rently undergoing rapid economic reform, which results in a surplus of agricultural
labor in rural areas. The transition from an agriculturally based economy to an
industry or service-based one is taking place in many rural villages. However, the
degree to which the transition is completed varies substantially from one region to
the other. In general, wage jobs are still in short supply. Thus, the local economic
conditions may have strong implications for peopleÕs work activities and hence the
division of labor within the household.
It is necessary to point out that working ‘‘outside’’ is typically regarded as the fa-
vorable outcome in rural China. It is true that what is preferred work may differ
from one individual to the other, or from one family to the other. Some may enjoy
doing sideline work while others might prefer to work in a local factory. In contem-
porary rural China, however, ‘‘outside work’’ is generally considered more impor-
tant and desirable. In a study of womenÕs work using focus group interviews by
Barbara Entwisle, Zhai Fengying, and their associates (Entwisle et al., 1994), it
was found that wage jobs and agricultural fieldwork were listed as the two work
types of the highest priority by most women and that the task precedence paralleled
income potential. Wage jobs were the favored jobs of most women because they were
generally more lucrative, prestigious, and fun, and consequently gave the person
more status in the family when more income was brought home. Agricultural field-
work also had high priority because it is important to the survival of the family and
absolutely needs to be done. While it is often not as profitable as wage jobs, it pro-
vides a more stable source of income than working in private enterprises, and in
some areas the income from agriculture is similar to or even higher than money
earned from local industry (Jacka, 1997). Thus, it is no coincidence that the intergen-
erational division of labor between women mirrors that of gender division of labor
(See Figs. 1 and 2).
572 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

It is worth noting that menÕs work activities are not included in the model. I am by
no means suggesting that men are not involved in the decision making process of
work activities in rural households in China. However, given the dependent variable
that I am interested in, i.e., ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work, it is reasonable not to in-
clude menÕs work. As Fig. 1 indicates, men are predominantly engaged in ‘‘outside’’
work, which makes it a constant in the model. Thus, I do not include menÕs work
activities when modeling the intergenerational division of labor between women.

8. Results

Are work arrangements between the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law mainly

determined by their individual characteristics or local labor market conditions irre-
spective of the household dynamics? In order to answer the question, I use various
models to separate these different effects. In Model 1, I enter individual characteris-
tics of the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law respectively (I variables). In Model 2, I
enter indicators of household characteristics (H variables). I find significant effects of
individual as well as household variables in both models. In Model 3, I include both
groups of variables. In Model 4, I add community variables (C variables). I present
v2 statistics in Table 4.6 The coefficient estimates are not shown, because they remain
stable across models. Full results of Model 4 are presented in Table 5.
If the individual characteristics such as age and education were the sole determi-
nants of the work arrangements between the generations, I would have found that
the I variables dominated and the H variables did not matter. The v2 statistics
and the parameter estimates (not shown) of both Model 1 (with I variables only)
and Model 2 (with H variables only) suggest that both sets of variables contribute
significantly to the explanation of work arrangements between the generations. Fur-
ther, a likelihood ratio test between Model 1 (with I variables only) and Model 3
(with both H and I variables) suggests that controlling for individual characteristics,
I still find that household variables add significantly to the explanatory power of the
model. Adding the community level variables in Model 4 also improve the model fit,
with the effects of other variables remaining stable.7 The step-by-step addition
of variables in these models thus clearly confirms the expectation that household
dynamics do matter. Despite the influence of structural factors such as local labor
market conditions, or individual level characteristics, household dynamics play an

6
I chose not to present the coefficients in Table 4 to avoid redundancy, because they were robust
across different model specifications. Readers can refer to the coefficients presented in Table 5. Because the
analysis is based on a small sample size and some categories of the dependent variable have a limited
number of cases in them, the number of independent variables can affect the power of hypothesis tests. I
am aware of the danger of running out of degrees of freedom by using too many variables. In the
preliminary analysis, different combinations (and subsets) of the independent variables were entered in the
models, in order to make sure that the coefficients were robust to different specifications.
7
Although the coefficients do not appear significant in the contrasts that are presented in Table 5, they
are significant in other contrasts such as category 4 vs. 3.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 573

Table 4
Multinomial logit models on intergenerational work arrangements (N ¼ 304)
Model 1 Model 2 Model 3 Model 4
Individual-level Household-level Both individual Adding
variables variables and household level community
(I Variables) (H Variables) variables (Both variables
I and H Variables) (C Variables)
Model v2 120.410 81.170 292.750 405.550
DF 27 15 42 51

important role in determining the division of labor between the generations. The re-
mainder of the discussion thus considers the full model. I present the detailed results
in Table 5, showing three contrasts, with category 1 (daughter-in-law working out-
side, mother-in-law working inside), a ‘‘typical’’ category of division of labor as the
baseline category.
The results provide evidence that the division of labor between the generations re-
sponds to family needs. My observation is informed by the effect of the presence of
preschool children in the household. With preschool children present in the house-
hold, the probability of the household being in Category 3 (both generations work-
ing outside) is lower than being in Category 1 (daughter-in-law working outside,
mother-in-law inside). Since ‘‘inside work’’ (e.g., gardening, raising chickens/pigs,
and housework) is more compatible with childcare, it suggests that grandmothers
are likely to be responsible for childcare, allowing the mother to participate in other
more lucrative work. This could be a strategic choice benefitting the whole family.
This is consistent with the literature, which highlights grandparental involvement
in childcare in China (Chen et al., 2000; Hermalin et al., 1998). Interestingly, such
an effect is not present in the contrast of Category 4 (both generations working in-
side) vs. 1 (daughter-in-law working outside, mother-in-law inside), or the contrast
of Category 2 (daughter-in-law working inside, mother-in-law outside) vs. 1. This
suggests that the presence of preschool children encourages more of an adjustment
on the part of the grandmother than the mother. Otherwise, I would observe signif-
icant effects on the contrast between category 4 and 1, or 2 and 1, if the mother
(daughter-in-law) were the one who cut back work loads by switching from outside
to inside work. Again, this is consistent with earlier studies, finding that motherÕs
work is relatively unaffected by childcare, and to a large extent predetermined child-
care in China (Entwisle and Chen, 2002; Short et al., 2002). Part of the answer lies in
the availability of grandparental help.
The results indicate that power dynamics within the household also play an im-
portant role. As stated in the hypothesis, I use three variables to measure possible
power differentiation between the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law in the house-
hold. The presence of a father-in-law in the household does not make a difference
in their division of labor. In other words, widowhood for the mother-in-law does
not affect work arrangements between the daughter-in-law and mother-in-law. Inter-
estingly, whether the son heads the household does affect the division of labor. With
574 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

Table 5
Multinomial logit model on intergenerational work arrangement, full model (N ¼ 304)
Independent variables Estimates
2 vs. 1 3 vs. 1 4 vs. 1
Individual characteristics (I variables)
Age of daughter-in-law )0.438


)0.114


0.040
(0.097) (0.031) (0.060)
Age difference between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law )0.103 )0.118


0.060
(0.053) (0.030) (0.050)
Daughter-in-law with greater education 3.035 1.631
)2.400

(1.625) (0.800) (1.130)
Mother-in-law with no education )4.257

)2.764 )0.161
1.550 1.432 1.432
Mother-in-law with some primary school education )4.515
)2.231 )0.200
(1.920) (1.458) (1.404)
Mother-in-law completed primary school )3.703
)2.299 )0.003
(1.470) (1.331) (1.191)
Daughter-in-law with no education 3.612 1.739 )4.707


(2.020) (1.119) (1.720)
Daughter-in-law with some primary school education )0.643 0.234 )0.659
(1.086) (0.463) (0.725)
Daughter-in-law completed primary school )0.477 0.318 )0.720
(0.873) (0.341) (0.588)
Household characteristics (H variables)
Presence of children aged 0-6 in the household )1.173 )0.920
0.410
(0.630) (0.386) (0.636)
Number of household members above age 6 )0.138 )0.329

0.094
(0.202) (0.123) (0.238)
Whether natal kin of daughter-in-law in the same county )1.172 )0.059 )1.019

(0.695) (0.473) (0.479)
Presence of father-in-law in the household )0.549 0.200 0.100
(0.695) (0.330) (0.538)
Whether the son heads the household )1.690 )1.188

)0.403
(1.477) (0.429) (0.522)

Community characteristics (C variables)

Percent of agricultural labor force in the community 0.020 0.018 )0.025
(0.020) (0.013) (0.017)
Number of enterprises in the community >20 employees 0.018 0.001 )0.027
(0.019) (0.011) (0.017)
Whether the community is a suburb or village (1 ¼ suburb) )0.285 )0.387 0.591
(0.725) (0.521) (0.585)
Intercept 15.977
9.713


0.009
(4.548) (2.460) (3.620)
Model v2 405.55
DF 51
Notes. Category (1) Daughter-in-law working outside, mother-in-law inside, (2) mother-in-law
working outside, daughter-in-law inside, (3) daughter-in-law and mother-in-law working outside, (4)
daughter-in-law and mother-in-law working inside.
Standard error (in parentheses) adjusted for clustering.
*
p < :05.
**
p < :01.
***
p < :001.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 575

the son heading the household, the household is more likely to have the daughter-in-
law working outside and mother-in-law working inside, rather than having both of
them working outside (see contrast 3 vs. 1 in Table 5). I interpret the effect as being in
favor of the daughter-in-law, because working outside is the preferred outcome (see
point made earlier). Another interesting variable is the proximity of natal kin of the
daughter-in-law. With natal kin present in the same county, the daughter-in-law is
much more likely to work outside than inside (see Contrast 4 vs.1). Since I regard
working outside as the favorable outcome, having the natal kin close by seems to in-
crease the daughter-in-lawÕs power position in the household and therefore affects
the division of labor between her and the mother-in-law.
Finally, relative resources, measured by age and education are important in deter-
mining the division of labor. For example, the older the daughter-in-law and the lar-
ger the age difference between the generations, the more likely they are to engage in a
division of labor with daughter-in-law working outside and mother-in-law inside,
rather than both of them working outside (see Contrast 3 vs. 1). Education also mat-
ters. Mothers- in-law with low education are less likely to work outside (see Contrast
2 vs. 1). Daughters-in-law with more education than the mothers-in-law were less
likely to work inside (see Contrast 4 vs. 1). These results confirm the importance
of individual resources as well as power in determining work arrangements between
the generations.

9. A quick look at housework

The above analysis establishes the division of labor between daughters-in-law and
mothers-in-law as an outcome of individual characteristics, household dynamics,
and local labor market condition. The ‘‘inside-outside’’ work typology, however,
does not look into housework since almost every woman does that. How does the
division of housework look between the daughter-in-law and mothers-in-law? Does
participation in ‘‘outside work’’ reduce oneÕs responsibility for housework?
I examine two common types of housework activities, cooking and laundry, using
the 1993 CHNS data. The results (not shown) suggest that responsibilities within the
home are shared by mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law. Daughters-in-law are
doing more laundry work on average whether or not they are engaged in outside
or inside work. If the daughter-in-law is working outside and the mother-in-law is
working inside, cooking still seems to be shared by daughters-in-law and mothers-
in-law, rather than the sole responsibility of mothers-in-law.
The picture seems to be contrary to what is depicted in literature. It is commonly
thought that mothers-in-law were taking over responsibilities within the house while
daughters-in-law entered the formal labor force in large number, either by doing
agricultural fieldwork or working in a factory (Wolf, 1985). My analysis shows that
engaging in work with remuneration does not necessarily mean a reduction of house-
hold chores. The changed nature of the power relationship between the daughters-in-
law and mothers-in-law has not led to reversed roles. Despite the complaints of older
women about their lowered status in the family (Dai, 1991), the results do not suggest
576 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580

a reversed oppression within the house. While the mothers-in-law in the old days were
being served by the daughters-in-law, the daughters-in-law are still responsible for re-
sponsibilities at home. This suggests the possibility of role enlargement.

10. Summary and conclusions

The household has been the basic unit of production in rural China since the late
1970s. The economic reform has transferred immediate responsibility for production
from collectives back to households. Although there is a resemblance to the past in
that work activities were organized around the household, it is far from a simple rep-
etition of history. Intra-household dynamics as well as the division of labor among
household members are indeed very different.
This paper examines the dynamics within extended households by focusing on
work arrangements between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law in contempo-
rary rural China. Results from the loglinear analyses clearly suggest that work
arrangements of the generations of women are not simply aggregation of their indi-
vidual work activities, but rather indicate coordination between them. The adjust-
ments in the division of labor between the generations of women reflect changes
in the nature of the power relationship. It went from a time when womenÕs work
was largely confined within the boundary of the household and with daughters-in-
law doing most of the work, to nowadays when women are engaging in a variety
of work and daughters-in-law and mothers-in-law coordinate their work activities.8
The departure from the historical past did not happen all of a sudden, but was grad-
ually shaped by multiple social and economic forces, including the communist revo-
lution, increasing female participation in the agriculture since the 1950s, eroding
patriarchal norms, and recent economic development in rural China.
One of the central points of the paper is that work arrangements between the
mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are closely linked with changes in the gender
division of labor. I depict the intergenerational division of labor between women
in rural China in terms of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work, which historically was used
to describe the gender division of labor in China. Analysis based on CHNS (1993)
shows that daughters-in-law were more likely to engage in ‘‘outside’’ work, including
wage work and agricultural fieldwork, while mothers-in-law were more likely to en-
gage in ‘‘inside’’ work, or including household-based sideline activities or house-
work. At the same time, men were twice as likely as women to engage in the more
lucrative wage work. Interestingly, with men seeking new and better economic op-
portunities in the wage sector and women picking up agricultural fieldwork, some
researchers observed that the definitions of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work could be
shifting as a consequence, with agricultural fieldwork being reclassified as ‘‘inside’’

8
Although the classification of ‘‘inside’’ vs. ‘‘outside’’ work was an ideal type and there were
significant variations among regions and groups, the general statements that women were much less likely
to engage in ‘‘outside’’ work and that daughters-in-law did much more work than mothers-in-law in
historical China were true.
 F. Chen / Social Science Research 33 (2004) 557–580 577

work (Henderson and Entwisle, 2000; Jacka, 1997). The fluid boundary of ‘‘inside’’
vs. ‘‘outside’’ work further demonstrates the legacy of patriarchy.
Multivariate analysis in this paper suggests that the intergenerational division of
labor is a family strategy as well as a result of power negotiation between the gener-
ations. Obviously individual characteristics and local labor market conditions are
important determinants of work patterns. However, household characteristics also
matter. The division of labor responds to family needs, such as childcare demands.
It also depends on relative resources of the family members, and is affected by power
dynamics within the household, both of which are closely intertwined with each
other.
Historically, human beings have always been innovative in modifying existing cul-
ture and tradition to meet with new needs and situations. The extended family has
been a traditional family form in many Asian countries and continues to exist despite
the trend of modernization. However, the dynamic within the family is certainly shift-
ing. Confucian ideology deems filial piety of ultimate importance and demands abso-
lute obedience to parents-in-law for married women. Nowadays, new social and
economic circumstances leads to an adjustment of this intergenerational relationship,
benefitting both generations. For example, historically, childcare responsibilities were
not those of the grandparents. Nowadays, it is normative for grandmothers to take
care of the grandchildren, which facilitates mothers to work ‘‘outside.’’
Finally, it is worth noting that the changed relationship between daughters-in-law
and mothers-in-law does not mean that the roles are reversed. While in the old days
daughters-in-law were servants of the whole household, it is by no means the situation
of mothers-in-law nowadays. In my analysis this was partly reflected by sharing of
housework between the generations. While the mother-in-law lost the power as the
‘‘deputy patriarch’’ in the household, the daughter-in-law did not assume this posi-
tion in her place. Who ultimately benefits from the readjustment? Is it the daugh-
ter-in-law? Maybe to some extent, but men are still the biggest beneficiaries. With
adjustments between the generations of women, men do not have to adjust their roles.

Acknowledgments

An earlier version of the paper was presented at the 2000 annual meeting of the
Population Association of America at Los Angeles. I gratefully acknowledge the
support provided by the Carolina Population Center and Compton Foundation. I
also would like to thank Barbara Entwisle, S. Philip Morgan, Glen Elder, Rachel
Rosenfeld, Guang Guo, and three anonymous reviewers for helpful comments.

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