Family culture is deeply rooted in the transformation and development of
Chinese society and has a profound influence on individual behavior and
family decision-making. This paper examines the impact of the family
culture of China on marriage stability. By using data from the China
Family Panel Studies, this paper shows that family culture is
significantly positively associated with marriage stability. The
estimation of the instrumental variable—the number of memorial archways (paifang)
per 100,000 persons in each province—and a series of robustness checks
all support the major results. It is also found that the positive impact
of family culture on marriage stability is mainly seen for people with
weaker perceived importance of family well-being, for those with lower
levels of education, and for individuals living in a small family.
Finally, the positive effect of family culture on marriage stability is
primarily observed in older generations, specifically those born before
1969.
Li Hao
. The power of family: The impact of family culture on marriage stability in China[J]. Chinese journal of sociology, 2022
, 8(1)
: 79
-103
.
DOI: 10.1177/2057150X211067297