Has the Ageing Crisis promoted Gender Equality?

Poor Asian countries are ageing rapidly. Yet public pensions remain meagre. How has this affected gender relations? Vote!

While low fertility may advance gender parity in schooling, it does not erode ideals of seclusion. Instead, we need to think about intergenerational expectations in the long-run. In patrilineal societies, parents rely on sons for old age support. Falling fertility may then exacerbate skewed sex ratios.

However, iff female employment has been normalised, economically insecure parents look to daughters as providers and socialise them to act like sons.

Thus while Indian and Uzbek girls are often taught to please in-laws, Chinese families want their daughters to become economically independent. Chinese families’ concern for old age security (coupled with low fertility) thus advance gender equality.