Gender-Blind Welfare States in East Asia?

• In Event: Lightning Round: Feminism, Gender, and the State in Japan, Korea, and China

Abstract

Mirroring the demographic shifts observed in Japan and South Korea, China also faces a looming population crisis. These three East Asian countries have devised various family policies boosting fertility rates, ideally to the replacement rate of 2.1. But why are their pro-natalist policies rarely effective during their recent demographic transition periods? I argue that the limited success of these family policies is largely due to that they are produced within gender-blind welfare states, which consistently and intentionally ignore the increasing, gendered care burdens (often disproportionately shouldered by women). Specifically, my research centering policy gender-blindness seeks to address three key questions: (1) Why have Japan, South Korea, and China developed (or sustained) gender-blind welfare provisions? (2) To what extent are their family policies gender-blind? (3) What disproportionate impacts do these policies have, particularly on women?

Methodologically, I employ mixed methods and three primary analytical lenses to answer the three questions. The first involves a historical analysis using a feminist institution approach to reveal long-standing gender biases in the welfare development of Japan, South Korea, and China from the end of World War II to the onset of sub-replacement fertility rates. The second uses content analysis through a social reproduction lens to assess the extent of gender blindness in their family policies, including both policymaking and implementation. Lastly, intersectionality serves as an analytical strategy guiding data analysis and interpretation, to uncover the disproportionate impacts on diverse women.

Author

• Xiao Sun, University of Florida