Cultural and Ethnic Differences in the Transitions from Work to 'Retirement' of Rural Elders in China's Minority Regions

36 Pages Posted: 22 Sep 2015

See all articles by Rachel Connelly

Rachel Connelly

Bowdoin College - Department of Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Margaret Maurer-Fazio

Bates College - Department of Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Abstract

This paper considers the work to "retirement" transitions of the rural elders in China who reside in seven regions with substantial minority populations. The data employed, those of the China Household Ethnicity Survey, are ideal for examining the effect of cultural differences on this key lifecycle event, the reduction of market-oriented work with age. Membership in particular ethnic minority groups is used to proxy the potential differences in the culture of aging and caregiving. We find that beyond education, the strongest predictors of labor force participation for China's rural elders are age, disability, widowhood, and ethnic minority status. The effects of ethnic minority group status on labor force participation are robust and the differences in participation among ethnic groups are sometimes large. It is thus misleading, in the analysis of the labor force participation of China's rural elders, to simply dichotomize ethnic minority and majority (Han) group membership. Further careful research is needed to help understand the differences in perceptions of aging among China's rural ethnic minority groups.

Keywords: ethnicity, retirement, labor force participation, elders, aging, China Household Ethnicity Survey

JEL Classification: J14, J15, J16, J26, D13, O53

Suggested Citation

Connelly, Rachel and Maurer-Fazio, Margaret, Cultural and Ethnic Differences in the Transitions from Work to 'Retirement' of Rural Elders in China's Minority Regions. IZA Discussion Paper No. 9343, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2663773 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2663773

Rachel Connelly (Contact Author)

Bowdoin College - Department of Economics ( email )

Brunswick, ME 04011
United States
207-725-3790 (Phone)

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Margaret Maurer-Fazio

Bates College - Department of Economics ( email )

276 Pettengill Hall
4 Andrews Road
Lewiston, ME 04240
United States
207-786-6087 (Phone)
207-786-8338 (Fax)

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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