Women’s lives in contemporary Chinese societies

Abstract

This chapter examines contemporary women’s lives in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan by highlighting common issues related to gender roles and stereotypes, marriage and family, paid and unpaid labor, violence against women, and mental health. The central role of the family in traditional Chinese culture intersects with women’s role identity and social experience. Notwithstanding political divides in systems and socioeconomic changes, the culture of gender defines the experience of Chinese women across geographical regions. Entrenched in gender stereotypes and ideologies, new challenges for women arise despite advances in their socioeconomic development. A gender mainstreaming approach is regarded as a more comprehensive model for women’s advancement in which men would be engaged as equal partners to address women’s issues in a gender perspective.