The Status of Family Resilience: Effects of Sustainable Livelihoods in Rural China

Bo Yang , International Business School Shaanxi Normal University
Marcus W. Feldman, Stanford University
Shuzhuo Li, Xi'an Jiaotong University

During China’s social transition rural families are experiencing changes in their livelihoods, which may influence family resilience. How family resilience is affected by sustainable livelihoods is not clear. This study of rural Chinese families classifies individual’s perceived family resilience and discusses how sustainable livelihoods influence this classification. A multilevel survey of rural families revealed three categories of perceived resilience in families: perceived optimistic families, perceived cooperative families, and perceived pessimistic families. Sustainable livelihoods, including natural, social, financial, and human capitals, have significant impacts on this classification of perceived family resilience. We conclude that rural families in China vary in their levels of family resilience, and the more physical and financial capital they have, the more internal cooperation there is in families. The more natural and traditional social capital families have, the less internal cooperation there is in families. The more human resources families have, the more resilience they have.

See extended abstract

 Presented in Session P1. Poster Session Fertility, Family and the Life Course