Research On Measurement Of Occupational Gender Segregation In China

Equality of men and women is a basic state policy in China. In terms of employment, equality is the most important core content in realizing equality of men and women. As the fundamental of people’s livelihood, employment is an important mode of realizing individual’s value and self-improvement, a basic guarantee for women to realize economic independence and obtain comprehensive development, and an important reflection of a country’s reasonable allocation of social resources. Since the establishment of new China, Chinese government has attached much importance to employment and considered employment as one of the most important political missions of developing the national economy and society. For a long time, the focus of employment has primarily been in the overall scale and employment rate in China, and the attention and governance of unbalanced gender distribution in occupation are insufficient. Consequently, a large number of male-dominated and female-dominated occupations have emerged in various fields of the national economy. The excessive gathering of male or female in certain occupations will lead to substantial differences between the two genders in employment opportunities, positions, income and occupational development, etc.Although occupational gender segregation exists extensively in the economic society of China, people still haven’t formed sufficient alertness and cognition towards this issue. At present, occupational gender segregation still hasn’t attracted sufficient attention from the Chinese government and the society. In the formulation and implementation of policies, the mainstream awareness of gender hasn’t been thoroughly formed in the society, and the formulated gender-related policies have been excessively unilateral and scattered, which has deepened the dilemma confronting female in employment to a certain extent. The generation of occupational gender segregation has its profound historical, social and personal reasons. In essence, it refers to a certain gender group which hasn’t been equally treated, and has been stuck in a status being discriminated in social, political, economic and cultural development. Based on the large sample data from 1982 to 2011, the current situation, degree, causes and development tendency of occupational gender segregation are deeply analyzed. On this basis, policy suggestions and countermeasures of governing occupational gender segregation are proposed, and all of them are of great positive significance and reference value in facilitating the optimized configuration and reasonable utilization of manpower resource, See the main content and innovation points of this paper below:(1) The current situation of occupational gender distribution is clarified. From the analysis of industries, regions and occupations from 1982 to 2011 in multiple layers and dimensions, it is found that the overall employment proportion of females has been continuously reducing in Chinese cities and towns, and women haven’t obtained opportunities of equal employment with men in the labor market. Thus, occupational gender segregation has demonstrated a further increasing trend in China. In core occupations and general occupations regarding administrative affairs, women show a low level of representativeness in China. In these occupations that are in possession of abundant social resources and higher reputations, there’s still a large gap between women and men in occupational development. Women are mainly focused on production and service-oriented occupations, while men play a dominant role in national politics, economy and culture. Thus, there’s an enormous gap between women and men in occupational development.(2) The degree of occupational gender segregation is measured. Five methods of measuring the degree of occupational gender segregation are adopted, and they are D index, Ds index, Ip index, Ox index and A index. Through the study of the large sample, five index tables of occupational gender segregation are achieved:industrial gender segregation index table from 1994 to 2011, industrial segregation index table of 31 Chinese provinces from 2003 to 2010, industrial gender segregation index from of five Chinese economic areas from 2003 to 2010, gender segregation index table of 164 non-agricultural occupations in four general surveys from 1982 to 2010, and international industrial gender segregation index table of ten major countries from 2003 to 2008. It is suggested by the result of the measurement with multiple methods that although the overall level of occupational gender segregation is relatively low in China, it still shows trends of further expansion. Generally speaking, occupational gender segregation forms entry barriers towards another gender group in physiology, technology and concept, etc. It is suggested by the result of the measurement with international industrial gender segregation that the degree of occupational gender segregation is relatively lower in China than other major countries in the world. The degree of occupational gender segregation is lower and more stable in such developed countries as America, Japan, Germany, France, England, Canada and Korea. However, in such developing countries as Indonesia, Egypt and China, the fluctuation of the index of occupational gender segregation is substantial.(3) A comprehensive multi-method measurement model is constructed. The multiple methods of measurement, including D index, Ds index, Ip index, Ox index and A index, show different degrees of satisfaction towards different measuring criterions, such as equal composition, invariant scale, symmetric gender, principle of transition, invariant occupational scale and gender composition, etc. Consequently, it is possible that conclusions reached by different methods will deviate from the authentic degree of occupational gender segregation. Evidential reasoning is an effective method of solving this type of undetermined evaluation. Based on the theory of evidential reasoning, a comprehensive multi-method measurement model is constructed on occupational gender segregation in this paper. Furthermore, IDS software is utilized to analyze the provincial and municipal-level industrial gender segregation and international industrial gender segregation. It is suggested by the result that the comprehensive multi-method measurement model, which is effective and reasonable to a certain extent, can better reflect the degree of occupational gender segregation.(4) Paths through which occupational gender segregation can be governed are put forward. As a complicated social phenomenon that has existed in the long term, occupational gender segregation has in-depth economic, social and cultural causes. The governance of occupational gender segregation is a long-term and enormous system engineering which really needs to bring the awareness of gender into the mainstream of social development, and thoroughly motivate multiple subjects to construct a comprehensive governance system which involves multiple subjects in the society, such as the government, enterprises, individuals, trade unions, education and training institutions, private organizations and publicity media. Thus, the equal employment and development between men and women can be realized, and each social group can acquire equal development and share the achievements of social civilization and development.