Intergenerational Co-residence and Gender Attitudes in East Asia

Abstract

Gender equality had long been discussed and studied. Besides education and the influence from society, the family is the closest and most important place in which people form and change their views and values about the gender issue. Are old values more likely to be passed on in families in which several generations live together? We found interesting results here. East Asia has a relatively high level of economic growth; however, the gender equality status is still not satisfying. China, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and Taiwan share highly similar cultural backgrounds. Additionally, they all underwent rapid development after World War II. Most importantly, they share a tradition of several generations living together. By studying the impact of co-residence on gender attitudes in families in those four societies, the impact of co-residence is carefully examined.