Social importance of parental leave for fathers

One of the biggest policy reforms that will fundamentally change Chinese people's lives is the universal two-child policy that has been in effect since Jan 1, 2016.

Parental leave policies which encourage greater fathers' involvement in child care and domestic work may facilitate having a second child in several ways.

Firstly, several studies from the UK, Sweden, Hungary, and Italy suggest that a more gender-equal division of domestic work may facilitate having a second child for couples. One of my studies of British couples finds a positive relationship between fathers' involvement in domestic work and a faster transition to a second birth among double-earning couples but not among couples where mothers do not work.