Sex inequality driven by dispersal

Yuan Chen; Erhao Ge; Liqiong Zhou; Juan Du; Ruth Mace

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2022.12.027

Sex inequality driven by dispersal

Curr Biol. 2023 Feb 6;33(3):464-473.e4. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.12.027. Epub 2023 Jan 9.

Authors

Yuan Chen¹, Erhao Ge², Liqiong Zhou³, Juan Du⁴, Ruth Mace⁵

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, 222 Tianshui South Road, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, PRC; Department of Anthropology, University College London, 14 Taviton Street, London WC1H 0BW, UK. Electronic address: yuanchen1317@gmail.com.
² State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, 222 Tianshui South Road, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, PRC; Department of Anthropology, University College London, 14 Taviton Street, London WC1H 0BW, UK.
³ State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, 222 Tianshui South Road, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, PRC.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Grassland and Agro-Ecosystems, College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, 222 Tianshui South Road, Lanzhou, Gansu 730000, PRC. Electronic address: dujuan@lzu.edu.cn.
⁵ Department of Anthropology, University College London, 14 Taviton Street, London WC1H 0BW, UK; Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, Université de Toulouse 1 Capitole, 31080 Toulouse Cedex 06, France. Electronic address: r.mace@ucl.ac.uk.

PMID: 36626905
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.12.027

Abstract

Inequality between the sexes is pervasive both outside and inside the home. One contributing factor could be the dispersal of one sex at marriage that sets up sex-specific differences in relatedness to the group. Here we exploit the ecological diversity and different social structures found in southwest China to investigate the role of sex-biased dispersal on inequality in the sexual division of labor. We use a wearable fitness tracker and validated readings by confirming that participants' daily "steps" were positively correlated with time spent in high-energy activities, such as agriculture and animal husbandry work, and negatively correlated with low-energy activities, such as leisure and relaxation. We applied multilevel comparative approaches to examine the relative workload pattern between the sexes under different dispersal states. Our results reveal two characteristics that lead to an unfavorable division of workload: being female and dispersing at marriage. This is consistent with the hypothesis that males have increased bargaining power when remaining in their natal home, leading to inequality in workload.

Keywords: accelerometer; labor division; postmarital residence; sex inequality; workload.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
China
Female
Male
Sex Characteristics*
Sexual Behavior, Animal*