Islam, Family Life, And Gender Inequality In Urban China (routledge Studies On Ethnicity In Asia)

This book studies the relationship between Islam, family processes, and gender inequality among Uyghur Muslims in Ürümchi, China. Empirically, it shows in quantitative terms the extent of gender inequalities among Uyghur Muslims in Ürümchi and tests whether the gender inequalities are a difference in kind or in degree. It examines five aspects of gender inequality: employment, income, household task accomplishment, home management, and spousal power. Theoretically, it investigates how Islamic affiliation and family life affect Uyghur women’s status. Zang’s research involved rare and privileged access to a setting which is difficult for foreign scholars to study due to political restrictions. The data are drawn from fieldwork in Ürümchi between 2005 and 2008, which include a survey of 577 families, field observations, and 200 in-depth interviews with local Uyghurs. The book combines qualitative and quantitative data and methods to study gendered behavior and outcomes. The author’s study reinterprets family power and offers a more nuanced analysis of gender and domestic power in China and makes a pioneering effort to study spousal power, gender inequality in labor market outcomes, and gender inequality in household chores among members of ethnic minorities in China. The book will be of interest to students and scholars of ethnic studies, Chinese studies, Asian anthropology and cultural sociology. 1 Between Islamic Affiliation And Gender Inequality 1 -- Five Aspects Of Gender Inequality 2 -- Possible Mechanisms Of Sexual Stratification 2 -- Religiosity As A Mechanism Of Gender Inequality 6 -- Family Processes As A Mechanism Of Gender Inequality 10 -- Changes And Persistence In Family Life Among Uyghurs 11 -- How Do Family Processes Affect Gender Inequality? 15 -- Do Family Processes Matter? 21 -- 2 Historical Contexts And Research Design 24 -- Xinjiang And Ürümchi 24 -- The Demographic History Of Uyghurs And Han Chinese In Xinjiang 27 -- Islam In Xinjiang 33 -- Fieldwork In Ürümchi 36 -- Analytic Methods 39 -- Dependent Variables 39 -- Independent Variables 40 -- 3 A Hard Choice: To Work Or Not To Work? 48 -- Gender Gaps In Employment In China 50 -- Muslim Women's Labour Supply 51 -- Field Observations In Ürümchi 53 -- Why Are Women Less Likely Than Men To Be Employed? 57 -- Is Religion Related To Female Labour-force Participation? 62 -- Religiosity And Muslim Women's Labour Supply 64 -- Does Religiosity Affect Gender Inequality In Work In Ürümchi? 64 -- Do Family Processes Affect Women's Market Behaviour? 68 -- Family Processes And Gender Inequality In Employment In Ürümchi 71 -- Supplementary Analyses 75 -- 4 Why Do Uyghur Men Earn More Than Uyghur Women? 77 -- The Gender Earnings Gap In China 78 -- Gender Earnings Gaps Among Uyghurs 79 -- Why Do Women Earn Less Than Men? 81 -- Is Religious Affiliation Related To Earnings? 85 -- Religiosity And Gender Inequality In Income 85 -- Religiosity And Uyghur Women's Earnings 87 -- Family Processes As A Determinant Of Earnings 89 -- Family Processes And Gender Inequality In Income 91 -- Supplementary Analyses 93 -- 5 Who Does Household Chores? 95 -- Why Are Gendered Divisions Of Household Chores Important? 95 -- How Are Household Tasks Measured? 97 -- Gender Inequality In Housework Among Uyghurs 99 -- How Can Gendered Divisions Of Household Chores Be Explained? 106 -- Religiosity And The Allocation Of Household Chores 109 -- Religiosity And Housework Among Uyghur Couples 110 -- Family Processes And Housework Among Uyghurs 115 -- Supplementary Analyses 120 -- 6 Who Manages The Household? 122 -- Why Must Household Management Be Studied? 123 -- How Is Household Management Measured? 124 -- Gender And Household Management 125 -- The Gendered Division Of Household Management In Ürümchi 126 -- Possible Accounts Of The Gendered Division Of Household Management 134 -- Religiosity And Household Management 135 -- Family Processes And Household Management 140 -- Supplementary Analyses 144 -- 7 Who's The Boss? 146 -- What Is Family Power? 146 -- The Distribution Of Family Power Among Uyghurs 148 -- Relative Resources And Gender Inequality In Domestic Power 152 -- Gender Ideology And Family Power 156 -- Islamic Affiliation And Family Power 157 -- Religiosity And Family Power In Urumchi 158 -- Family Work And Spousal Power 161 -- Family Processes And Domestic Power 165 -- Supplementary Analyses 169 -- 8 All In The Family 172 -- Gender Inequalities And Parities Among Uyghurs 172 -- Why Is Religiosity A Weak Mechanism Of Gender Inequality? 174 -- Why Are Family Processes A Major Mechanism Of Gender Inequality? 177 -- Policy Implications 179. Xiaowei Zang. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This book studies the relationship between Islam, family processes, and gender inequality among Uyghur Muslims in Urumchi, China. Empirically, it shows in quantitative terms the extent of gender inequalities among Uyghur Muslims in Urumchi and tests whether the gender inequalities are a difference in kind or in degree. It examines five aspects of gender inequality: employment, income, household task accomplishment, home management, and spousal power. Theoretically, it investigates how Islamic affiliation and family life affect Uyghur women's status. Zang's research involved rare and privileged This book investigates the ways in which Islam affects family matters, and especially the status of women, and the ways in which family, religion and society interrelate among Uyghurs in China.