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Estimates of missing women in twentieth-century China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2012

QUANBAO JIANG ,
SHUZHUO LI ,
MARCUS W. FELDMAN  and
JESÚS JAVIER SÁNCHEZ-BARRICARTE
QUANBAO JIANG
Affiliation:
Institute for Population and Development Studies, School of Public Policy and Administration, Xi'an Jiaotong University.
SHUZHUO LI
Affiliation:
Institute for Population and Development Studies, School of Public Policy and Administration, Xi'an Jiaotong University.
MARCUS W. FELDMAN
Affiliation:
Morrison Institute for Population and Resource Studies, Stanford University.
JESÚS JAVIER SÁNCHEZ-BARRICARTE
Affiliation:
Department of Political Science and Sociology, Carlos III University of Madrid.
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Abstract

The phenomenon of ‘missing women’ has existed throughout the twentieth century in China. Using data from five censuses, with appropriate adjustments, we estimate the numbers and percentage of missing women from the period 1900–2000. The analysis is broken down into historically important periods, and the consequences of missing women, particularly that of China's ‘bare branches’, are explored. Implications for Chinese society are then discussed.

Evaluation des « femmes manquantes » en chine au cours du vingtième siècle

Il est attesté que le phénomène des « femmes manquantes » était présent en Chine au cours du vingtième siècle. En utilisant les données de cinq recensements et avec les ajustements appropriés, nous évaluons le nombre et le pourcentage de femmes manquantes durant la période 1900–2000. Une analyse différentielle est menée pour les grandes périodes historiques successives et nous explorons les conséquences de ce manque de femmes en Chine créant des branches familiales stériles, faute d'épouse. Les implications pour la société chinoise sont alors discutées.

Schätzungen der im 20. jahrhundert in china „verloren gegangenen“ frauen

Das Phänomen der „verloren gegangenen“ Frauen hat in China das ganze 20. Jahrhundert hindurch bestanden. Auf der Basis der Daten aus fünf Volkszählungen schätzen wir – mit den entsprechenden Korrekturen – Anzahl und Prozentsatz der im Zeitraum 1900–2000 „fehlenden“ Frauen. Dabei unterteilen wir die Analyse in historisch wichtige Abschnitte, fragen nach den Konsequenzen der „fehlenden“ Frauen, insbesondere im Hinblick auf Chinas „Zweige ohne Blätter“, und diskutieren die Implikationen, die sich daraus für die chinesische Gesellschaft ergeben.

Type
Research Article
Information
Continuity and Change , Volume 27 , Issue 3 , December 2012 , pp. 461 - 479
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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References

ENDNOTES

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25 Coale and Banister, ‘Five decades’; Das Gupta and Li, ‘Gender bias’.

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36 Coale and Banister, ‘Five decades’.

37 Das Gupta and Li, ‘Gender bias’.

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41 Das Gupta and Li, ‘Gender bias’.

42 Ibid.

43 Ibid.

44 Coale and Banister, ‘Five decades’.

45 Jiang and Sánchez-Barricarte, ‘Bare branches’.

46 Ibid.

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