One of the main problems facing China in recent years is overpopulation. The Chinese government
needed to make policies to combat the quickly growing numbers of Chinese citizens. In 1979 the
Family Planning Commission of China implemented the One-Child Policy as a solution. The One-
Child Policy states that parents in urban settings are limited to having only one child. Parents in rural
areas are allowed two children provided the first is a girl. Boys are highly valued in Chinese culture,
and this value especially applies to more rural areas.

The government enforces this regulation by penalizing families that have more children. Parents
with over quota children are fined for each additional birth. Their taxes are raised and they no longer
receive free health care. Parents who comply with the One-Child Policy receive money from the
government in addition to their free healthcare.

Adults in Chinese society worried that having so many only children would cause a new generation of
spoiled and selfish children. Chinese parents as well as the Chinese government feared the 4-2-1
syndrome. The 4-2-1 syndrome is the idea of having four Grandparents, and two parents all focusing
their attention on one child. However, Chinese culture stresses the values of self-discipline, control,
conformity, and working towards the common cause. These values do not support or condone catering
to children and parents were actually not likely to spoil their children. The government also set up
numerous early education programs to help avoid the spoiled child syndrome. Children attend nursery
school and day-care programs from a very early age. These programs enforce working together and do
not individually spoil the children.

The One-Child Policy dramatically reduced the number of births in China. Chinese families were
traditionally large. The current rate of births is down to 1.8 children per woman. However, there are
still many over-quota births especially in rural areas. Families that cannot afford the fines sometimes
feel social and financial pressure to abandon the child. Abandonment is a punishable crime,
but most are overlooked and go unpunished. Many Chinese children end up in orphanages or are
adopted either within China or by families overseas.

Aird, John., (1996). China's War on Chilren. The American Enterprise, 7, 58-61

Johnson, K., Banghan, H., Wang, L., (1996). Infant Abandonment and Adoption in China. Population
and Development Review, 23-4 469-510.

Lau S., (1996) Growing up the Chinese Way: Chinese Child and Adolescent Development. Hong Kong:
The Chinese University Press.

This page was created by Jessica Carroll, Kirsten Jo Eby, Daniel Gonzalez, and Matt Rigberg for a Tulane
University course, Children & Society. This course is taught by Professor April Brayfield. Our purpose is to
accurately describe the lives of children in China. Information on children in other countries is available at the
Childhood Around the World homepage.

Last updated: December 7, 1999