Transforming Gender and Development in East Asia

Bringing together a collection of original essays from top scholars in the US and Asia, this book explores the centrality of gender in the process of economic development in East Asia. Contributors demonstrate the essential parts women have played in the national growth, economic restructuring, and industrialization of East Asian countries, including South Korea, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Thailand. The studies are grounded in ethnography, personal narratives, field observation, and in-depth interviews. Despite lack of recognition, women's roles as workers, union organizers, wives, consumers, and producers have had substantial influence in the financial and industrial development of East Asia. Essay topics include: gender inequality in the Taiwan workplace; working-class families and economic restructuring in Hong Kong; labor disputes in South Korea; and migration, marriage, and mobility in China. With fresh and informative perspectives, this collection gives the full story on the "AsianMiracle" economy.

Esther Ngan-ling Chow is Professor of Sociology at American University in Washington, D.C.