The Impact of Child Birth and Child Care on the Employment of Women From the Perspective of Gender Preference, Nursing Care and Family Relationships

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15H03363
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Public finance/Public economy
• Research Institution: Keio University
• Principal Investigator: McKenzie Colin 慶應義塾大学, 経済学部(三田), 教授 (10220980)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 暮石 渉 国立社会保障・人口問題研究所, 社会保障応用分析研究部, 第3室長 (00509341) ; 若林 緑 東北大学, 経済学研究科, 准教授 (60364022) ; 坂田 圭 立命館大学, 経済学部, 教授 (60346137)
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: 労働経済学 / 出産 / 介護 / 育児 / 女性の就業

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Mothers who return to work early after having their first child are found to have a higher probability of being employed full-time in the long-term (10 years later), but not in the short-term (3 years later).
It is found that the gender of the youngest child has no impact on the labour market activities (labour market participation, hours worked or wage rate) of Japanese mothers. In contrast, in Thailand the gender of the youngest child has no impact on the labour market activities and that impact varies with the age of the child.
For Japanese couples, an increase in the future probability of looking after their parents or parents in law leads to an increase proportion of couples born after 1946 choosing to have no children. Once a couple chooses to have at least one child, this probability has no impact. For the cohort born before 1946, there appears to be no impact.

Free Research Field

計量経済学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

育児休業期間をフル活用しない理由として子どもの生まれ月と保育所に入所願書を提出する時期との関係が非常に重要であり、育児休業最大期間を延長すると、多くの母の行動に影響を与えないことを示唆している。将来の介護を担う確率と子どもを産む行動が関係していることは高齢少子化を促進し、悪循環となることを示唆している。その上、兄弟数の減少が将来の介護を担う確率を増加させるので、ダブルパンチの可能性がある。分析は介護保険制度前のデータを利用したが、制度導入後でも、家族による介護がまだ重要である。