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Families in China

Families in China
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Families in China. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
last updated:
9 September, 2024
Despite China’s family planning goals, people are more inclined to talk about the pains of marriage and childbirth. Photo: Shutterstock
Chinese culture

Opinion | How China’s reality TV shows reveal changing attitudes to marriage

A hit reality show about couples seeking divorce might come off as mere spectacle but the public discussion around it is telling.

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Feminism

Meet one of China’s ‘full-time dads’

Women and gender

Running from China: the ‘older’ single women escaping to study in the West

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Trending in China

Young people from unloving families seek comfort from digital online parents

Growing numbers of young people in China who come from unloving families are turning to “digital parents” with their problems.

Increasing numbers of young people in China who come from loveless families are seeking solace in “digital parents” on mainland social media. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/Douyin
Trending in China

Neglected elderly woman in China leaves fortune to pets, shuns selfish children

An elderly woman in China has left all her money and property to the cherished cats and dogs who have kept her company in old age, but nothing to her adult children who have been nowhere to be seen.

Trending in China

Man demands daughter’s child take his surname or ‘he will die’, sparking debate

A family dispute in China has started a public debate about surnames children should take after a grandfather who supports his daughter’s family demanded his 10-year-old granddaughter adopt his surname.

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Podcasts

Why did I abandon my Chinese name? asks New York student in moving podcast

Aria Young’s award-winning podcast ‘What’s In A Name?’ explores her roots through the acceptance of her native name – one she replaced with an English one when she moved to the US.

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Aria Young started using an English name when she moved to the US. She explores how she feels about that in her award-winning podcast, “What’s In A Name?”. Photo: Jenessa Lu
City Weekend

Hong Kong couples ‘keen to avoid children with complex profiles’ when adopting

Most children up for adoption have special needs, and that puts off potential adoptive parents.

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China education

Parents sue to recoup huge tuition losses amid China’s education crackdown

Private tutoring firms are collapsing across China, leaving angry customers out thousands of dollars. Meanwhile, some tutors look to cash in via a burgeoning black market, but others are being forced to leave China.

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China's population

Opinion | China’s population crisis is here to stay, and Beijing has its hands full

China has woken up to the demographic challenge it faces, but the question remains, can the government do enough to prevent its births ‘falling off a cliff’?

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China, which only this year allowed couples to have three children, has woken up to its demographic challenge and is rolling out a range of policies to encourage more births. Photo: Xinhua)
Sex and relationships

The Naked Truth | Celebrity crushes can be harmless – but also a wake-up call

It is often not a cause for concern if your partner has a celebrity crush. A relationship expert explains why they’re harmless – and what to do if a crush really does start to impede your relationship.

Fans react at a Papa Roach concert. Celebrity crushes are usually associated with screaming teenage girls at film premieres or concerts, but adults have them too. Photo: Getty Images
Wellness

My parents didn’t tell me I had cancer. Now I see why, but I wish they had

Chinese parents avoid telling their children upsetting news, even if it is about their own health. From a Confucian view illness is a family issue, an expert explains. Still, this needs to change, a doctor says.

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Wellness

‘His father was holding a stick to discipline him’: autistic kids in China

Many parents in China are ignorant about how to help their autistic children, say support organisations, while government subsidies and legal protection are lacking.

China society

‘Too much pressure’: mixed reaction to China’s new 3-child policy

Beijing has relaxed its family planning rules, but researchers aren’t optimistic that young Chinese will be convinced to have more children.

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China has scrapped its two-child policy and couples can now have three children. Photo: EPA-EFE
Sex and relationships

The Naked Truth | Signs you are growing apart in a relationship and how to stop it from happening

Relationship expert Valentina Tudose explains the signs to look out for that indicate a couple are growing apart and how to reverse it – the key is to have conscious conversations.

There are many reasons that couples end up feeling emotionally distant or disconnected. There are ways to rekindle the spark, though. Photo: Getty Images
Sex and relationships

The Naked Truth | How to turn around those negative feelings about your relationship

When you have been with a partner for a long time, you sometimes see only problems. You need to focus on the positives, see the good sides of the other person, appreciate small gestures, and speak frankly about genuine issues you may have.

Sex and relationships

The Naked Truth | How to forgive yourself – it’s the only way you’ll ever truly love others

Learning the art of self-forgiveness will help you stop criticising yourself for things you did in the past. By removing this negative thinking, you’ll find peace of mind and a happier relationship.

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China education

China to include pupils’ sleep hours in schools’ evaluations

With more than 60 per cent of Chinese children aged between six and 17 sleeping less than eight hours a day, the Ministry of Education has called on schools to find ways to ensure pupils get more.

The Chinese government wants to tackle growing health issue by making it part of schools’ evaluation. Photo: Getty Images)
China education

‘Is feminine a bad word?’ China’s plans to toughen up boys met with outrage

Ministry of Education’s plans for more PE classes in schools and teaching methods that ‘cultivate masculinity’ have been strongly criticised by gender and sexuality experts.

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China society

Soon it will be illegal to hit or scold your children in China

With passage of the family education law, China will join 60 other jurisdictions that have made it illegal for parents to hit their children. But police struggled to implement an earlier ban on corporal punishment.

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Cinema

Teen filmmaker creates a touching LGBT movie based on true story

Ran Yinxiao is only 19, but he has turned a real-life gay couple’s story of their adoption of a child into a movie that challenges traditional views about the Chinese LGBT community.

A still from Forbidden Love in Heaven. Photo: courtesy of Ran Yinxiao
Chinese language cinema

Film that shows plight of China’s ‘left-behind’ children wins praise

Documentary about a Chinese former Olympic baseball star’s efforts to secure a better future through the sport for some of the millions of ‘left-behind’ children in the country has been praised as inspirational by cinema-goers.

Ma Hu appears in Tough Out.
China society

‘Married’ at 13: Chinese child bride told to return to school

A 13-year-old child bride in southern China was ordered to go back to school after a video of her getting married to a 17-year-old boy caused a huge stir in the country.

China society

‘I’m lucky I can retire at 50’: pension reform plan irks Chinese

A government plan to raise the retirement age in China has sparked anger. An academic points out people stay in education longer these days and their life expectancy is higher than when pensionable ages were set decades ago.

Children in China

Juggling job and family a struggle for China’s working mums

The problems and fears working mothers in China face rejoining the workforce and balancing their jobs with family life have been highlighted by a survey.

A Chinese mother resting with her daughter while shopping. Photo: AFP
Sex and relationships

The Naked Truth | Why a prenup can improve a marriage – and even be romantic

It may sound cold, but discussing a prenup can demonstrate your willingness to hear your partner, acknowledge their fears and concerns, and reach a compromise that can provide a solid foundation for marriage.

Critics of prenuptial agreements say they put unnecessary pressure on marriages, but others believe they are a practical requirement. Photo: Shutterstock
Coronavirus pandemic

Child abuse in Hong Kong escalating because of pandemic: expert

There has been a rise in child abuse and neglect in Hong Kong with children and stressed parents – many of who have lost their jobs – spending more time at home, says Vanessa Hemavathi, board chair of Help for Children Asia.

Parenting: teens

Remembering tragic tale of Hong Kong boy who vanished in China

Mentally disabled Yu Man-hon was 15 when he went missing at the border of Hong Kong and mainland China 20 years ago and has not been seen since. A reporter who followed the case recalls the experience.

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