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Institution Analysis:

Effects of Chinas One-Child Policy on


Families
By Group 3: Kanani Dreibus, Courtney Fukushima, Vivian Hy, Brandon Lee, Ilene Tam, and
Jessica Wada
History of Chinas One-Child Policy
In 1954 Mao Zedong took over reign of the
Republic of China, during this time he started a
campaign to encourage families to have more
children. As a result of the increase in birthrates a
food shortage occurred in part from Maos failed
economic planning. A new regime of new leaders
took place that believed restricting population
growth would lead to a greater economic prosperity.
And so the One-Child Policy was implemented.
Other regulations and exceptions were put into
place such as, receiving a fine if you have more
than one kid and rural families were able to receive
permits for a second child. Since then, the policy
has slightly relaxed but is still in place today.

Outsiders View on Chinas One-Child
Policy
Social psychologists describe children born under the one-child policy who do not have siblings
as little emperors which can result in a number of consequences for the country, especially
with the outnumbering ratio of boys to girls

Activists are trying to get people more aware of the Gendercide happening in China.
Gendercide is the systematic killing of a specific gender as result of the one child policy families
favor boys over girls because of many reasons. Some reasons being that they can carry on the
family name and they are more favored financially.

A positive outcome to the One Child Policy slowed down China's increasing population growth
problem. It lowered the population density which led to an increase in food supply and better
living standards in general.
Insiders View on Chinas One-Child Policy
Video summary:
interview with one daughter and her family
-parents dont think it violated their free choice,
single daughter thinks policy necessary for
population control
-think 2 children are better than one because
children learn from sibling interactions
interview with sociologist
-puts too much responsibility on single child to
support and look after parents
-even with removal of policy, couples would still
have one child because of cost
2 single child students interviewed
-lonely, wish for sibling
double click on video or use this link: http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2013-10-25/social-impact-of-chinas-onechild-
policy/1210018.

Changing Chinese Families
shift of focus from paternal grandparents towards only child
whole family spends leisure time together, rather than separation between adults and children
parents pay for costly activities for child
decrease in standard nuclear families which consists of a father, mother, and child as the
generations get older and get married and live alone
especially in urban families, a daughter is being treated equal to how a son would have been
treated
decrease in filial piety, parents dote on children even after their marriage
young couples are moving away from living with only husbands parents towards living with
wives parents or alone as separate couples

Why it has changed
An unevenly distributed population where there are more men than women
Under the one-child policy, families were using sex selection methods to conceive sons
China announced they would allow parents to have a second child to increase the birthrate
Increasing the birthrate will fix the demographic imbalance
Not enough women for men
More men will be single bachelors
An imbalance between the young and old populations
Several retirees will be under the care of very few workers
No economic growth
In Beijing, the new changes to the one-child policy are supposed to help with family development
o If one parent is an only child, then the married couple can have a second child
Parents can have a second child only after 4 years after their first born
The mother must be older than age 28
What has not changed/What is stable
Chinas one-child policy has been around since 1979
o It has helped prevent many births
o It has helped Chinas economy by slowing down the population growth
o By 2025, China should have zero population growth if the one-child policy is not changed
o Families are using sex selection methods to conceive sons
o An imbalance in age and gender
o There are more men than women
o There is a higher population of the older generation than the young generation
How to improve the family
In order to have a more balanced and happier society, China needs to value daughters instead of viewing them as
a shame to the family.
- Chinas divorce rate has gone so high that in 2010 one in every five marriages will most likely end in divorce.
- Abortion rates, infant abuse, neglect, and gender imbalances in society have increased over the years because
females are not valued as much as males.
We can expand on Chinas recent improvement on allowing more women to have a second child due to certain
exceptions.
- Women who have children born with birth defects or major health
problems are often allowed a second child.
- In some rural areas, women who have a female first born child are allowed a
second child in hope for a son (after waiting 3-4 years after the first is born).
- In the future, all parents whose child has passed away should have the
chance to have another child.


Major Participants, their roles and statuses
Deng Xiaoping set up the one-child policy to have the ideal family consist of one mother, one father,
and one child.
- Every family is allowed only one child in order to control the population growth in China.
Each family member plays different roles, and some which may vary depending on the family's status.
- Some families who have a daughter instead of a son are looked down upon just because Chinese
favors sons over daughters.
- Families who are allowed two children still suffer consequences from society and have difficulty
affording a good life and education for both their children which lowers their social status.
- Men are known to be in charge of the household, the money, and his wife while the wife is there to
produce sons and take care of the house/child.

Works better/worse for...

o Males are more superior and will continue the familys generation.
Many Chinese parents abort or abandon their daughters in order to have a son in their family.
This is unfair toward the females since they are so looked down upon.
Chinas sex ratio at birth is very imbalanced. There are about 113 boys born in China for every
100 girls. (Global population ratio is currently about 107 boys born for every 100 girls.)
This results in many of the men having trouble finding brides. (Approximately 40 to 50 million
Chinese men will never marry, and an estimated 12 to 15 percent of Chinese men will be unable
to find a mate within the next seven years.)
Because of the one-child policy,
Chinese parents prefer to give birth
to a boy.
o This results in the percentages
of males in Chinas population
to increase dramatically.
o This caused the continuation of
a decline in Chinas fertility
rate.

Functionalist Perspective
Change occurs due to societys needs as the society changes.
o Because of the rapid growth of Chinas population, they instituted the one-child
policy.
Society has to follow norms and values in order to have stability.
Majority of country agreed to only have one child.
Chinese parents had to sign forms, saying that they agree to this policy.
If deviance is shown at first, given time people will begin to recognize the policy and
cooperate.
There is some deviance over the one-child policy.
This deviance may either be considered and changes will be made, or nothing will
happen.
If more people begin to oppose the policy and fight against the government,
according to this perspective, they should be considered.
Conflict Perspective
When looking at the conflict perspective, those with more resources and wealth prosper
versus the less fortunate.
o Ultrasound scans to identify the gender of the baby are illegalI. In Suining city,
people will pay ultrasound technicians up to $150 in bribes to determine the gender
of their child, which is only one-tenth of the fine they would have to pay for having a
child without a birth permit.
o Those with more money have the ability to cover up their wrong doings, so they
often repeat these illegal offenses.

Society is created by conflict between groups.
There is more competition for females to survive, since
males are perceived to be dominant.
There is immense pressure for the mothers to have a
son.

Works Cited
Arnold, Nick. "China's One Child Policy and the Global Depopulation Bomb." American Thinker. Lifson, 23 Dec.
2013. Web. 13 July 2014.
Australia Network News. Social Impact of China's One-Child Policy. ABC Radio Australia. Radioaustralia.net.au. 25
Oct 2013. Web. 13 July 2014.
"Gender Imbalance in China." All Girls Allowed. All Girls Allowed, n.d. Web. 13 July 2014.
Levin, Dan. "Many in China Can Now Have a Second Child, but Say No." New York Times. 26 Feb. 2014: A4+.
Newspaper Source Plus. Web. 13 July 2014.
Nakra, Prema. "China's "One-Child" Policy: The Time For Change Is Now!." World Future Review (World Future
Society) 4.2 (2012): 134-140.Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 July 2014.
Nie, Jing-Bao. Chinas One-Child Policy, a Policy without a future. Cambridge Quarterly of Health Ethics. July
2014, Vol. 23 Issue 3. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 July 2014
Wang, Fend. Population, Policy, and Politics: How Will History Judge Chinas One-Child Policy? Wiley Blackwell.
Population & Development Review. Feb. 2013, Vol. 38 p115-129. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 July 2014
Xiao-Tian, Feng, Dudley L. Poston Jr., and Wang Xiao-Tao. "China's One-Child Policy And The Changing
Family."Journal Of Comparative Family Studies 44.2 (2014): 17-29. Academic Search Premier. Web. 13 July
2014.

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