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How Chinese Newlyweds’ Experiences as Singletons or Siblings Affect Their Fertility Desires

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 November 2020

Cong Zhang Open the ORCID record for Cong Zhang [Opens in a new window] ,
Aaron Z. Yang ,
Sung won Kim  and
Vanessa L. Fong
Cong Zhang*
Affiliation:
School of Social Development and Public Policy, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Aaron Z. Yang
Affiliation:
Anuban Muang Chiang Rai School, Chiang Rai, Thailand. Email: aaronzhengyang@gmail.com.
Sung won Kim
Affiliation:
Department of Education, Yonsei University, South Korea. Email: sungwkim@yonsei.ac.kr.
Vanessa L. Fong
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Amherst College, USA. Email: vfong@amherst.edu.
*
Email: congzhang@fudan.edu.cn (corresponding author).
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Abstract

Did growing up as singletons (only-children) convince young adults born under China's one-child policy of the superiority of singleton status and therefore the desirability of not having more than one child? This article draws on interviews with 52 childless newlyweds in Dalian, China, to help answer this question. We found that far from convincing them of the superiority of singleton status, the feelings of loneliness experienced by singletons in childhood and adulthood have convinced most of them that it is better to have a sibling than to be a singleton and thus it is better to have two children instead of one. Moreover, interviewees who did have siblings tended to corroborate singletons’ beliefs about how valuable a sibling can be in both childhood and adulthood.

摘要

摘要

作为独生子女长大的经历是否会使在中国独生子女政策下长大的年轻人认同独生子女身份的优越性，并因此希求只生育不超过一个孩子？本文基于对中国大连 52 对无子女新婚夫妇的访谈，对该问题作出解答。研究发现，童年时期和成年之后所经历的孤独感使受访者们并不认同独生子女地位的优越性，而是认为拥有兄弟姐妹优于作为独生子女。因此，生育两个以上的子女也优于仅生育一个子女。此外，非独生子女的受访者们也进一步证实了独生子女们所认同的，兄弟姐妹在童年时期和成年之后所具有的意义和价值。

Keywords

fertility preferencesonly-childrensiblingsone-child policytwo-child policyChina生育偏好独生子女兄弟姐妹独生子女政策二胎政策中国
Type
Research Article
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 247 , September 2021 , pp. 835 - 854
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Copyright
Copyright © SOAS University of London, 2020

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