Another interesting trend to watch out in an aging and divorcing society here: young little-emperor couples increasingly untying the knot. From Beijing Review
“Currently, more than half the number of people who go to marriage counselors are those in their twenties — the 1980s’ one-child generation — as compared with last year, when 90 percent of those with marital issues were aged 30 to 40,” said Hu Shenzhi, a marriage counselor with the All-China Women’s Federation. He said he had seen more than 20 young couples in 2006 — all born in the 1980s — whose marriages were close to ending.
Surveys by a law office in Guangzhou show that the number of divorce cases among the one-child generation is increasing. Hu attributed to this mostly to their having had a spoilt upbringing. Their parents tended to help in all matters, resulting in them lacking a sense of forgiveness and tolerance.
Hu said couples raised in one-child homes are usually self-indulgent. They are self-centered, used to being the focus of others and selfish, unlike those born in the 1960s and 1970s. These traits affect the stability of their marriages. Over time, this one-child generation begins to expect and ask for too much from the marriage, and the smallest challenges and difficulties tend to lead to divorce. [Full Text]
