William L. Parish

Sons, Daughters, and Intergenerational Support in Taiwan

This study focuses on married childrens financial support for their parents in Taiwan. It is often assumed that economic and social changes accompanying industrialization will drastically weaken parental power and thus reduce the support from adult children to parents. The data in this article, however, show that the vast majority of married children, both sons and daughters, provided net financial suppor for their parents during the previous year. The socioeconomic characteristics of the parents and children in the families where financial transfers occurred indicate that the altruism/corporate group model best portrays intergenerational transactions during the period of rapid economic growth.

Surplus men, sex work, and the spread of HIV in China

While 70% of HIV positive individuals live in sub-Saharan Africa, it is widely believed that the future of the epidemic depends on the magnitude of HIV spread in India and China, the worlds most populous countries. Chinas 1.3 billion people are in the midst of significant social transformation, which will impact future sexual disease transmission. Soon approximately 8.5 million ‘surplus men’, unmarried and disproportionately poor and migrant, will come of age in Chinas cities and rural areas. Meanwhile, many millions of Chinese sex workers appear to represent a broad range of prices, places, and related HIV risk behaviors. Using demographic and behavioral data, this paper describes the combined effect of sexual practices, sex work, and a true male surplus on HIV transmission. Alongside a rapid increase in sexually transmitted disease incidence across developed parts of urban China, surplus men could become a significant new HIV risk group. The anticipated high sexual risk among many surplus men and injecting drug use use among a subgroup of surplus men may create bridging populations from high to low risk individuals. Prevention strategies that emphasize traditional measures – condom promotion, sex education, medical training – must be reinforced by strategies which acknowledge surplus men and sex workers. Reform within female sex worker mandatory re-education centers and site specific interventions at construction sites, military areas, or unemployment centers may hold promise in curbing HIV/sexually transmitted infections. From a sociological perspective, we believe that surplus men and sex workers will have a profound effect on the future of HIV spread in China and on the success or failure of future interventions.

Intimate partner violence in china: National prevalence, risk factors and associated health problems

CONTEXT Intimate partner violence has been studied in many developed and developing countries. China remains one of the few large societies for which the prevalence and correlates of intimate partner violence are unknown. METHODS Data from a nationally representative sample of women and men aged 20-64 with a spouse or other steady partner provide estimates of intimate partner violence in China. Binomial and multinomial logistic regression analyses adjusted for sample design examine risk factors and negative outcomes associated with partner violence. RESULTS Altogether, 34% of women and 18% of men had ever been hit during their current relationship; the prevalence of hitting resulting in bleeding, bruises, swelling, or severe pain and injuries was 12% for women and 5% for men. Significant risk factors for partner violence included sexual jealousy, patriarchal beliefs, low female contribution to household income, low male socioeconomic status, alcohol consumption and residence in regions other than the South and Southeast. Severe hitting was a significant risk factor for self-reported adverse general and sexual health outcomes, including sexual dysfunction, sexual dissatisfaction and unwanted sex. CONCLUSIONS As in other societies, intimate partner violence in China is common and is correlated with adverse general and sexual health outcomes.

Politics and Markets: Dual Transformations

The articles published in this issue of the Journal help advance the debate on market reform in former socialist states. In our comment, besides dealing with data analysis issues, we suggest several ways to improve the level of debate about substantive issues. These suggestions include more attention to politics, including path dependence, and more attention to middle-level generalizations from other developing market societies.

Chinese urban life under reform : the changing social contract

Acknowledgements Part I. Introduction: 1. Socialist and market social contracts 2. The urban social world Part II. Group Interests: 3. Life chances: education and jobs 4. Economic rewards 5. Popular reactions to the changing social contract 6. Labor-management relations 7. Civil servants and bureaucratic behavior 8. Political participation and interest articulation Part III. Gender: 9. Gender and work William L. Parish and Sarah Busse 10. Gender and family William L. Parish and James Farrer Part IV. Comparisons and Conclusions: 11. Taiwan and China compared 12. Conclusion Appendices References Index.

Family Support Networks, Welfare, and Work among Young Mothers.

Using 1984 data from a nationally representative sample of young black and white mothers, this research investigates kin networks, kin network support, and the consequences of this support for womens work. Most young mothers have access to nearby kin, and it is these kin who most often provide child care and income support. Young black mothers more often live near kin and receive child-care assistance from kin. When racial differences in marital status are taken into account, white mothers are more likely to receive substantial income support. But for both blacks and whites, kin access and support from kin diminish rapidly as young mothers enter their mid-twenties. Patterns of kin assistance vary by the gender and work status of kin. Nearby female kin provide child care, while working kin provide income support. Contrary to cost-of-child-care arguments, kin-provided child care fails to increase labor force participation. But consistent with a cultureof-employment model, nearby working kin increase this participation. Several lines of research invoke extended family networks as a major factor in family functioning. With modern communication and transportation, the dispersing effects of higher rates of migration can be overcome. Through telephone contact and frequent visits, families separated in space can continue many traditional functions (Lee, 1980; Litwak, 1981; Sussman and Burchinal, 1962). Similarly, extended family networks provide important safety nets for families in poverty, particularly black and Hispanic families (Aschenbrenner, 1973; Bastida, 1979; Hays and Mindel, 1973; Mindel, 1980; Mutran, 1985; Taylor, 1986; Taylor, Jackson, and Quick, 1982). Teenage mothers and others who have lost their jobs turn to kin for shortand long-term assistance. The results of teenage mothering are somewhat less devastating for those who have a grandmother to provide child care while the young mother finishes school or seeks a job, and the quality of care received by children of single mothers is better when the extended family is involved (Furstenberg, 1976; Furstenberg, Brooks-Gunn, and Morgan, 1987; Hetherington, Cox, and Cox, 1978: Kellam, Ensminger, and Turner, 1982). The loss of heat and the threat of hunger and homelessness are less imminent if one has a larger set of kin to fall back on (Angel and Tienda, 1982; Martin and Martin, 1985; Presser, 1980; Tienda and Angel, 1982). The findings from this line of research are less than consistent, however. While providing shortNORC and Department of Sociology, University of Chicago, 1155 East 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

Married Women's Employment in Rapidly Industrializing Societies: Examples from East Asia

A variety of explanations have addressed the phenomenon of secular change in married womens employment in rapidly industrializing countries. These include theoretical frameworks that emphasize female labor supply, the conditions of labor demand, patriarchal values, the international division of labor, and the effects of exported industrialization. This article examines two societies (South Korea and Taiwan) that showed considerable similarity in female labor supply conditions, female labor force participation, and cultural values 20 years ago but have since diverged in dramatic and puzziling ways. Using aggregate and microlevel data, this article shows that the emergent differences in married womens employment are best explained by the intersection of labor supply (similar in the two cases) and demand (markedly different). The article highlights the impact of government policy and foreign loan investment in shaping the nature of labor demand during rapid export-led industrialization in both countries.

Tocquevillian Moments: Charitable Contributions by Chinese Private Entrepreneurs

Using a 1995 national survey of 2,870 Chinese private entrepreneurs, this article examines collaboration between private business and government in times of economic transition. Much as in the late 18th century situation in France as described by Tocqueville, special moments occur when a newly emerging business class offers monetary payments for charity and for honorary offices. In exchange, the government, desperate for new sources of revenue, provides social recognition and political access. The data suggest that into at least the 1990s Chinese private entrepreneurs donated generously to government welfare projects, and in exchange gained political access and social status via appointment to political councils.

A Population-Based Study of Childhood Sexual Contact in China: Prevalence and Long-Term Consequences.

OBJECTIVES This study provides national estimates of the prevalence of childhood sexual contact and its association with sexual well-being and psychological distress among adults in China. METHOD A national stratified probability sample of 1,519 women and 1,475 men aged 20-64 years in urban China completed a computer-administered survey in 1999-2000. The data from this survey on both adult-to-child and peer-to-peer sexual contact before age 14 were subjected to descriptive and multivariate analyses that were adjusted for both sampling weights and sampling design. RESULTS The overall prevalence of reported childhood sexual contact was 4.2%, with prevalence higher among men (5.1%) than among women (3.3%) and higher among those aged 20-29 years (8.3%). Childhood sexual contact was associated with multiplex consequences, including hyper-sexuality (high levels of masturbation, thoughts about sex, varieties of sexual practices, partner turnover), adult sexual victimization (unwanted sex, unwanted sexual acts, sexual harassment), sexual difficulties (genitor-urinary symptoms, sexually transmitted infections, sexual dysfunctions), and psychological distress. Psychological distress was largely mediated by adult sexual victimization, sexual difficulties, and hyper-sexuality. CONCLUSIONS Despite the relatively modest prevalence of childhood sexual contact among Chinese adults, the association with multiplex adult outcomes suggests that much as in the West early sexual contact is a significant issue. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS The findings underscore the importance of public education about childhood sexual contact and abuse in China. The findings suggest a need for public health campaigns that tackle the stigma associated with being abused and encourage victims to report abusive behavior to proper sources. The findings are also consistent with new efforts to alleviate the negative long-term impact of childhood sexual abuse.

Partner Violence and Sexual Jealousy in China: A Population-Based Survey

Using data from a nationally representative survey in China, this article examines the prevalence and risk factors for partner violence with a special focus on the important role of sexual jealousy. Among women aged 20 to 49, 7.2% reported that they were hit by their partners in the past year. Comparison shows that the Chinese prevalence is modestly below the overall median for other societies. Net of other factors, jealousy exacerbates hitting for both men and women in a reactive pattern, with the jealous partner getting hit. This suggests a rethinking of the role of sexual jealousy in spousal violence in some social settings.