Do Judges Exhibit Gender Bias? Evidence from the Universe of Divorce Cases in China

Xiqian Cai, Pei Li, Qinyue Luo, Hong Song and Huihua Xie
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Xiqian Cai: Xiamen University
Pei Li: Zhejiang University
Qinyue Luo: RFBerlin
Huihua Xie: Zhejiang University

No 2523, RFBerlin Discussion Paper Series from Rockwool Foundation Berlin (RF Berlin)

Abstract: Does gender identity affect judicial decisions? This paper provides novel evidence of in-group gender bias in the judicial decisions for almost all divorce cases in China. Exploiting the effectively random assignment of cases to judges, the analysis finds that female judges are 1.2 percentage points more likely to grant divorce petitions filed by female plaintiffs compared to male plaintiffs, relative to male judges. This bias primarily reflects female judges’ harsher treatment of male plaintiffs. The bias is significantly weaker in regions with stronger traditional gender norms, indicating that conservative cultural attitudes may constrain overt displays of in-group gender favoritism. Institutional legal development has little moderating effect, underscoring the primary role of culture. These findings highlight the importance of complementing efforts to promote judicial diversity with safeguards to detect and mitigate implicit bias.

Keywords: gender; in-group bias; gender discrimination; judicial decisions (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J10 J14 J16 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cna, nep-lab and nep-law
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:crm:wpaper:2523

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