A Study On Gender Differences In Labor Market Performance

In the process of reform and opening up and economic globalization,women have made great progress in the field of social and economic activities.However,gender differences in labor market performance persist.There are several typical facts about the gender differences in China’s labor market performance.First,the labor participation rate of both sexes in China is declining,but the labor participation rate of women is always lower than that of men,and the decline is greater and more obvious.Second,there is a significant difference between men and women in obtaining occupational status in the labor market.The occupational status of women is significantly lower than that of men,and there is a trend of expansion.Third,the gender wage gap in the labor market continues to exist and gradually expands.The problem of gender differences in the labor market has had an important impact on the stable and sustainable development of China’s social and economy.Therefore,it is of great significance to improve women’s labor participation rate,professional status and wage income to effectively increase the gender dividend and promote the long-term and stable development of China’s social and economy.As a long-standing research topic,many scholars at home and abroad have conducted extensive research on gender differences in labor market performance.Many scholars attribute the gender differences in labor market performance to human capital,gender segregation,gender discrimination,family division of labor and other factors.However,they cannot explain why the gender differences in labor market performance continue to exist and expand.Few literature studies the social and cultural roots of gender differences in the labor market.At the same time,the research on gender differences in labor market performance from the perspective of gender role attitudes is not systematic,and there is no mechanism to demonstrate it.Therefore,using the data of China General Social Survey(CGSS),this paper focuses on the impact of gender role attitudes on labor participation,occupational status acquisition,income and gender differences,and strives to deepen and expand the interpretation framework of gender differences in the labor market,providing a new perspective for examining and understanding the causes of gender differences and their persistence.First of all,in the research on the influence of gender role attitude on gender differences in labor participation,it is found that gender role attitude significantly affects individual labor participation,and is an important factor to explain gender differences in labor participation.To be more specific: First,gender role attitudes significantly inhibit women’s labor participation,but have no significant impact on men’s labor participation.In the dimensions of gender role attitudes that affect women’s labor participation,it is found that the traditional gender role attitudes of “Men are in charge of the outside and women are in charge of the inside” and “Men are more capable than women” still play an important role in the labor market.Second,gender role attitudes have a significant negative impact on labor participation of different female birth cohorts,while for female cohorts born later,there is a significant difference between urban and rural areas,which is mainly reflected in that gender role attitude only inhibits labor participation of rural women,and has no significant impact on labor participation of urban women.Third,family gender division of labor,such as housework and family care,is the main mechanism that gender role attitudes affect labor participation.Secondly,in the research on the influence of gender role attitude on the gender difference in occupational status acquisition,it is found that gender role attitude has a significant role in the occupational status acquisition of workers,and women’s occupational status is significantly lower than that of men.Gender role attitudes provide a powerful explanation for this difference.To be more specific: First,the traditional gender role attitudes are not conducive to the acquisition of professional status.In terms of gender,traditional gender role attitudes significantly inhibited women’s occupational status acquisition,but had no significant impact on men.Second,when further identifying the impact of specific dimensions of gender role attitudes on women’s occupational status acquisition,it was found that the traditional role orientation of “Men are in charge of the outside and women are in charge of the inside”,Female is attached to male,“Men are more capable than women” still had a profound impact on women’s occupational status acquisition.Third,social capital is part of the intermediary mechanism that gender role attitudes affect women’s occupational status.Finally,in the research on the impact of gender role attitudes on gender differences in income,it is found that gender role attitudes have a significant impact on the income of workers,and an important factor for the expansion of the gender gap in income is due to the heterogeneous impact of gender role attitudes on the income of men and women.To be more specific: First,gender role attitudes only inhibit women’s income,but have no significant impact on men.Second,if the influence of sample selection bias is not examined,the influence of gender role attitudes on women’s income will be underestimated.Third,gender role attitudes mainly affect the middle and low end of women’s income distribution,but have no significant impact on the high end of income.Fourth,the traditional gender role attitudes will further reduce women’s income by hindering the accumulation of human capital,inhibiting labor participation and obtaining professional status.This study provides a reference for further understanding the cultural roots of gender differences in labor participation,helps to further narrow the gender gap in the labor market,and promotes gender equality in the public and private sectors.At the same time,this paper puts forward corresponding countermeasures and suggestions,such as strengthening and improving the policy system of gender equality and antiemployment discrimination,actively changing the attitude of gender roles,further strengthening the education and training of women,establishing a mechanism for men and women to share family and social responsibilities,actively promoting the family friendly policy.