WOMEN, PRODUCTION AND REPRODUCTION IN A RAPIDLY INDUSTRIALIZING ECONOMY

Abstract

This thesis investigates the relationship between work, production and reproduction in an economy. More specifically, it is designed to test if hypothesis that existing literature has dwelled upon is correct. More importantly, it highlights the role of industrialization which has affected women's role in the economy and the latter's subsequent involvement in the labour force and fertility levels. In order to establish if work has any effect on fertility and vice versa, a case study of single factory women in Batam, Indonesia was done. Although the results were by and large similar to those found in most literature, a striking conclusion was also obtained. Work did not seem to have any effect on desired fertility levels. In addition, it was also found that Indonesian women have changed over time in their perception of work in the formal sector and their role as a mother. By comparing these results across countries and over time in Indonesia, it was discovered that work and fertility have effects on each other, albeit in slightly different ways across countries. This was seen to be attributed to differences in the level of industrialization and also the different cultures and perceptions of the people. As such, the difference in the causal relationship between work and fertility serve to remind us that different cultural and economic development stages of a country do affect both the proportion of women in the labour force and fertility levels.