Marriage not a priority for youth
Print Edition
CHINA’S marriage rate has declined for five years in a row as young people delay or give up on marriage.
The marriage rate dropped from 9.9 per 1,000 people in 2013 to a five-year low of 7.2 per 1,000 people in 2018, according to the National Bureau of Statistics and the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
The figures vary in different regions, with more developed regions having lower marriage rates.
Tying the knot is no longer seen as a necessity by today’s young adults, with many preferring the single life.
“The idea that singles are abnormal is so out of date. Being single doesn’t make me anxious at all,” said a 30-year-old woman who prefers to remain anonymous.
With a steady salary and no mortgage, she enjoys her current lifestyle, going to the gym every week and going on vacation with her friends.
Compared with her married friends, she says she has more freedom to do whatever she likes, but she does not reject marriage out of hand.
“There is no formula that fits everyone when it comes to marriage. Being single probably fits me best at present,” she said.
Many other young adults are postponing marriage.
People between the ages of 20 and 24 had the highest record of marriage registrations before 2012, while people between the ages of 25 and 29 became the mainstay in 2017, accounting for 36.9 percent of all registered couples, according to MCA statistics.
“The attitude toward marriage and giving birth is changing among those born in the 1980s or 1990s, with more choosing to marry late or not to marry at all,” said Lu Jiehua, professor of sociology with Peking University. “In an increasingly tolerant society, marriage is not the only option.”
The growing costs of living and education are further factors in the downward trend.
A report published by the China Institute for Educational Finance Research showed that the average cost of a child’s education from kindergarten to high school accounted for 13.2 percent of a family’s total costs in 2017, about 10.6 percent for rural families and 14.3 percent for urban families.
“As the cost of living rises in both urban and rural areas, many young adults cannot or temporarily cannot afford to get married,” said Lu Xiaowen, a researcher with the Institute of Sociology of Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences.
Today’s young people have a strong sense of individuality and are unwilling to be dragged down by household financial burdens, Lu said.
“I’d prefer a high-quality single life to a low-quality marriage” is a common refrain.
The decrease is also closely related to the changing demographic structure, said Shi Zhilei, associate professor with the School of Public Administration of Zhongnan University of Economics and Law.
“With the country’s population aging, the percentage of people of marriageable ages is dropping, which is bound to result in the decline of the marriage rate,” Shi said.
For Liu Yuanju, a researcher at Shanghai Institute of Finance and Law, it is normal for the marriage rate to drop in an increasingly developed society and the phenomenon should be viewed rationally. Nevertheless, for the purpose of raising fertility rates, measures should be taken.
Experts have suggested that authorities should prolong marriage and maternity leave and provide more low-rent housing for young city dwellers.
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