Editors: Chi Zhang & Jingxuan Zhuge, Class of 2025
Dr. Yu Wang is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Duke Kunshan University. She was one of the founding co-directors of the CSCC and is currently a co-lead for the CSCC Care and Gender Cluster. Dr. Wang has a rich academic background, with her research focusing on the intricate social dynamics within China. Her work explores the role of intermarriage and individual achievement as pathways to social mobility in China amidst rapid economic, social, and demographic transformations. She also extends her scholarly pursuits to the realm of public health, with a specific emphasis on child vaccination and preventative healthcare-seeking behaviors. Dr. Wang’s research endeavors have attracted funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and her work has been featured in several prestigious academic journals, including Journal of Marriage and Family, Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, Social Science Research, and American Journal of Public Health. Most recently, Dr. Wang published a paper titled “Age-discrepant marriages and educational assortative mating in urban China: The exchange of youth for status” in the Journal of Marriage and Family. The paper examines the dynamics of youth-status exchange in the context of gendered mate selection preferences in China. Deeply entrenched in China’s longstanding gender roles and the cultural valuation of attributes for selecting a marital partner, the study delves into a lesser-explored aspect of marital exchanges—the youthfulness of a bride and the educational status of a groom. In this interview, we invite Professor Wang to share more about this research and her broader academic journey.
Hi Prof. Wang, your latest paper, “Age-discrepant marriages and educational assortative mating in urban China: The exchange of youth for status”, highlights a gender-asymmetric pattern of youth-status exchange in marriage. Could you elaborate on how this exchange pattern forms? Also, we are curious about what motivated you to explore this dynamic in urban China?
The concept of gender-asymmetric exchange reflects the differing valuation of traits within the urban marriage market and is deeply rooted in traditional gender roles. The conventional male breadwinner-female homemaker model places a high value on women’s youth, associating it with fertility, marriageability, and physical attractiveness—traits that are desirable for homemakers. Conversely, education, which signifies earning potential, is undervalued in women but highly preferred in men.
My interest in this topic emerged from observing the phenomenon of “leftover women” in urban China. Many of these women report experiencing age discrimination in the marriage market, underscoring the gendered nature of age preferences in dating. Older women often face social exclusion and discrimination, while men’s age tends to be viewed more leniently. When comparing the Chinese dating market to that of the U.S., I noticed potential differences in these dynamics. Given the pronounced gendered aging processes in urban China’s marriage market, I became curious about whether youth could be leveraged as a resource akin to education, physical attractiveness, or other valued traits. It is widely accepted that men tend to prefer younger wives, while women often seek older husbands. But does this pattern signify an exchange? This question fueled my deeper exploration of the topic and motivated me to test the concept using quantitative data.
At first glance, if we observe that marriages where the husband is older and more educated than the wife outnumber other types of unions, it could suggest an exchange of women’s youth for men’s education. However, identifying such patterns is complicated by other factors, such as shifts in educational attainment (an increasing proportion of people obtaining higher education), trends in hypergamy (women’s tendency to marry up in socioeconomic status), and homogamy (the growing likelihood of individuals marrying within the same social group). Scholars of status-exchange theory caution that without accounting for these confounding variables, we risk identifying “false exchanges.” By employing log-linear models, I was able to identify a significant exchange pattern between women’s youth and men’s education, as well as an avoidance of exchange between men’s youth and women’s education in urban China.
In your study, you show how traditional gender roles continue to prioritize youth in women while undervaluing their educational achievements. How do you think this trend affects women’s social mobility in contemporary China, especially given the country’s rapid economic development and shifting social norms?
I believe that prioritizing youth in women during marriage selection can hinder their upward mobility. This is especially evident when women marry at a young age, often at the expense of continuing their education, leading to lower levels of educational attainment. Moreover, if women perceive that youth holds more value than education in the marriage market, they may choose not to pursue further educational goals or maintain low educational aspirations.
An intriguing trend I have observed in recent years is the rising number of young college students, particularly those in their early 20s, turning to matchmaking services in search of serious partners. This behavior suggests that young women may already be concerned about their diminishing marriage prospects as they age, motivating them to enter the marriage market sooner than expected and leverage their youth in partner selection.
Another hypothesis to consider is that marriages where the husband is older than the wife may imply a power imbalance that favors male authority within the household. In such dynamics, women may encounter limitations in asserting their autonomy or participating in significant decision-making processes within the family. This age disparity can reinforce traditional gender roles, where the seniority of an older husband contributes to an unequal distribution of power, potentially restricting women’s influence both in domestic settings and in broader public spheres.
Could you explain how the concept of “ideal age” for women is culturally constructed in urban China and its implications for both genders in the marriage market?
This “ideal age” is shaped by a complex interplay of traditional values, educational paths for men and women, demographic trends in age at first marriage, reproductive considerations, and media narratives. In this article, I have examined various mechanisms, but I would like to focus specifically on one: gendered fecundability.
In China, the strong association between marriage and fertility places significant emphasis on the age of potential spouses, with a clear gender bias. Women face greater discrimination for being older in the marriage market because youth is closely linked to fecundability. Our society has constructed an “ideal age” for childbirth, particularly for women, which influences how they are perceived even if immediate childbearing is not planned. Women beyond a certain age are often labeled as “too old” or “unsuitable for childbirth.” While men’s fecundability is also affected by age, it is less constrained, and societal norms tend to be more forgiving, extending the ideal age for men to an older threshold.
Due to these perceptions, both men and women may face negative social sanctions for not adhering to age norms. However, men are more likely to offset the stigma of age with income and wealth, which can mitigate the negative implications associated with being old. This contrast highlights the deep-rooted gender biases in how age is valued within the marriage market and broader societal expectations.
You have conducted extensive research on the topic of marriage and educational assortative mating in urban China. Could you briefly describe the methodology you employed in your study? Which aspects of this work do you find the most intriguing and challenging, and how have you addressed these challenges in your research?
I primarily rely on quantitative methods to address my research questions, utilizing a range of survey data, census data, and statistical techniques. What draws me to quantitative methods is their ability to quantify social constructs, revealing patterns and insights through data. Although these methods may not provide highly detailed or in-depth answers as qualitative data, they excel in producing findings that are generalizable to larger populations.
With the patterns of youth-status exchange being so pronounced in your findings, what future research directions do you think are essential to understand the evolving landscape of marital decisions in fast-changing societies like urban China?
When studying marriage, we often view individuals as seeking potential partners within a “market.” Understanding how various characteristics of individuals are valued in this marriage market is crucial. In a rapidly changing society where women’s education, career opportunities, and socioeconomic status are advancing, it is essential to examine how these shifts reshape the perceived value of traits in both men and women. Furthermore, it is equally important to explore how other demographic patterns—such as a skewed sex ratio, increasing rates of nonmarriage, and rising divorce rates—affect marriage sorting patterns, potentially overriding or interacting with individual preferences.
Your research has also expanded into health, particularly focusing on children’s health and vaccination. How does it connect with your broader interests in social inequality and family dynamics?
The access to various health-related resources significantly impacts health outcomes and contributes to health inequality within society. In the context of children’s vaccination, the family plays a crucial role in determining access to these essential health services. Studying family dynamics in the context of childhood vaccination provides valuable insight into the mechanisms that drive social and health inequality.
Families differ widely in their ability to access information, navigate healthcare systems, and provide timely vaccinations for their children. Factors such as parents’ education level, socioeconomic status, awareness about vaccines, and social networks shape decisions around vaccination. My research on the relationship between family dynamics and child vaccination provides an additional explanatory perspective on the issue of under-vaccination for non-NIP vaccines, complementing existing policy and health economic viewpoints.
Non-National Immunization Program (NIP) vaccines is a critical topic, especially in underserved populations. From your perspective, what are the biggest challenges to improving vaccination rates for non-NIP vaccines in China, and what strategies do you think hold the most potential for addressing these gaps?
Before I began studying this topic, I believed that affordability was the primary issue behind low or under-vaccination rates. However, after conducting research projects with my colleagues on child vaccination in Zhejiang, Henan, and Chongqing, I discovered that factors beyond affordability play an even more significant role, particularly for non-NIP (non-National Immunization Program) vaccines. For example, parental awareness of non-NIP vaccines is often low and varies significantly depending on the mother’s education level and socioeconomic status. When this limited awareness intersects with vaccine hesitancy, insufficient doctor-patient communication, and the undersupply of specific vaccines, it creates a complex influence on vaccination outcomes.
Vaccine education would be an important strategy to address under-vaccination. Parents, especially those with lower educational levels, need targeted information and support to improve their understanding of the benefits and safety of vaccines. By equipping parents with reliable and accessible information, we may be able to increase vaccine awareness and reduce vaccine hesitancy.
Given your extensive research on intermarriage, work-family conflict, and health disparities, where do you see your future work heading? Are there any emerging social issues in China that particularly interest you and that you think need deeper exploration?
I have several ongoing projects, most of which focus on marriage, work, and health. One project examines marriages involving “cougar” women and explores the characteristics of women in marital relationships with younger husbands, specifically looking at sex ideology. Another project investigates the relationship between working overtime in China and the male-breadwinner model. Additionally, my colleagues and I have completed data collection for our vaccination project in Chongqing and are currently in the paper drafting phase. Several of these papers will delve into themes related to motherhood responsibility and child vaccination.
Full Access to the Article:
Wang, Y. (2024). Age-discrepant marriages and educational assortative mating in urban China: The exchange of youth for status. Journal of Marriage and Family, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.13042
