The DOI matches its Crossref record.
Only Hope: Coming of Age Under China’s One-Child Policy
Abstract
The first generation of children born under China's one-child family policy is now reaching adulthood. What are these children like? What are their values, goals, and interests? What kinds of relationships do they have with their families? This is the first in-depth study to analyze what it is like to grow up as the state-appointed vanguard of modernization. Based on surveys and ethnographic research in China, where the author lived with teenage only children and observed their homes and classrooms for 27 months between 1997 and 2002, the book explores the social, economic, and psychological consequences of the government's decision to accelerate the fertility transition. Only Hope shows how the one-child policy has largely succeeded in its goals, but with unintended consequences. Only children are expected to be the primary providers of support and care for their retired parents, grandparents, and parents-in-law, and only a very lucrative position will allow them to provide for so many dependents. Many only children aspire to elite status even though few can attain it, and such aspirations lead to increased stress and competition, as well as intense parental involvement.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Without siblings, these women have become the sole beneficiaries of family investments (Fong, 2004; Kim et al., 2018).”
From Virtues or Talent among Brotherless Daughters: A Study of How Patriarchal Gender Ideals Affect Gender Role Attitudes among Women from the One-Child Generation in China (2024) · cites this paper as Fong, 2004
In the citing paper
“with the number of children restricted to only one, urban families began to treat their single girls as if they were sons.”
From The Social and Sociological Consequences of China's One-Child Policy (2021) · cites this paper as Fong 2004
In the citing paper
“Many urban couples concentrated their resources to invest in the educations of their only children, regardless of gender (Fong 2004, Tsui & Rich 2002, Lu & Treiman 2008).”
From The Social and Sociological Consequences of China's One-Child Policy (2021) · cites this paper as Fong 2004
Citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 101–200 of 593
Lateral vision: Juxtaposition as a method
Pál, N. (2013) · Ethnography · doi:10.1177/1466138113491677 · Cited by 31
Goh, E. C. L., & Göransson, K. (2011) · International Journal of Qualitative Methods · doi:10.1177/160940691101000306 · Cited by 30
Adversity and internalizing problems among rural Chinese adolescents
Davidson, S., & Adams, J. (2013) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1177/0165025413503421 · Cited by 30
Li, A. (2019) · Chinese Sociological Review · doi:10.1080/21620555.2019.1579052 · Cited by 30
Yang, J., Gong, J., Tang, W., et al. (2019) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su11216159 · Cited by 30
The New Generation of Migrant Workers in Urban China
Cheng, Z. (2014) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-54227-5_7 · Cited by 31
Which women stop at one child in Australia?
Parr, N. (2007) · Journal of Population Research · doi:10.1007/bf03031931 · Cited by 30
The Decline of the Chauvinistic Model of Chinese Masculinity: A Research Report
Jankowiak, W., & Li, X. (2014) · Chinese Sociological Review · doi:10.2753/csa2162-0555460401 · Cited by 31
Liu, R. X., Lin, W., & Chen, Z. (2009) · Journal of Child and Family Studies · doi:10.1007/s10826-009-9329-z · Cited by 30
Chen, C., Yuan, Z., & Hong, Z. (2019) · Children s Geographies · doi:10.1080/14733285.2019.1676879 · Cited by 30
Yoshikawa, H. (2006) · American Journal of Community Psychology · doi:10.1007/s10464-006-9068-x · Cited by 30
The Rise of Class Culture Theory in Educational Anthropology
Foley, D. E. (2010) · Anthropology & Education Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1548-1492.2010.01084.x · Cited by 29
Tu, M. (2017) · Children s Geographies · doi:10.1080/14733285.2017.1393499 · Cited by 29
Demographic Changes and Parent–Child Relationships
Trommsdorff, G., & Nauck, B. (2006) · Parenting · doi:10.1207/s15327922par0604_4 · Cited by 29
Ageing and familial support: a three-generation portrait from urban China
Liu, J. (2022) · Ageing and Society · doi:10.1017/s0144686x22000861 · Cited by 38
“In turn, each family has made every effort to provide its only child with the best possible chance to succeed in the competitive market economy – something also documented in other urban regions ( see Fong, 2004; Liu, 2007).”
BackgroundHomework help, achievement in middle school, and later college attainment in China
Kim, S. W., & Fong, V. L. (2014) · Asia Pacific Education Review · doi:10.1007/s12564-014-9350-9 · Cited by 28
Self-citationKim, S. W., Brown, K.-E., & Fong, V. L. (2017) · Ethos · doi:10.1111/etho.12168 · Cited by 28
Self-citationEmpowered in Business or Penalised in Marriage: Experiences of Single Female Entrepreneurs in China
Song, J. H., & Li, L. (2021) · Work Employment and Society · doi:10.1177/09500170211028737 · Cited by 30
To Your Health! Toasting, Intoxication and Gendered Critique among Banqueting Women
Mason, K. A. (2013) · The China Journal · doi:10.1086/668804 · Cited by 30
Behaviour problems in Chinese primary school children
Hesketh, T. M., Zheng, Y., Jun, Y. X., Xing, Z. W., Dong, Z. X., & Lü, L. (2010) · Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology · doi:10.1007/s00127-010-0240-0 · Cited by 30
Family meals and identity in urban China
Yu, H., Veeck, A., & Yu, F. (. (2015) · Journal of Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1108/jcm-09-2014-1146 · Cited by 28
The hard work of feeding the baby: breastfeeding and intensive mothering in contemporary urban China
Hanser, A., & Li, J. (2017) · The Journal of Chinese Sociology · doi:10.1186/s40711-017-0065-2 · Cited by 26
Harten, J. G. (2020) · Journal of the American Planning Association · doi:10.1080/01944363.2020.1781681 · Cited by 29
Global Multiple Migration: Class-Based Mobility Capital of Elite Chinese Gay Men
Choi, S. Y. P. (2022) · Sociology · doi:10.1177/00380385211073237 · Cited by 26
Ji, Y. (2025) · Sociology Compass · doi:10.1111/soc4.70050 · Cited by 30
Zou, W., & WALLIS, C. J. (2021) · Women s Studies in Communication · doi:10.1080/07491409.2021.1947925 · Cited by 25
Chinese childbearing decision‐making in mainland China in the post‐one‐child‐policy era
Su‐Russell, C., & Sanner, C. (2022) · Family Process · doi:10.1111/famp.12772 · Cited by 26
Seeberg, V. (2014) · Comparative Education Review · doi:10.1086/677774 · Cited by 25
Kim, S. W., & Fong, V. L. (2014) · The China Journal · doi:10.1086/674551 · Cited by 29
Self-citationInformed Social Reflection: Its Development and Importance for Adolescents' Civic Engagement
Selman, R. L., & Kwok, J. (2010) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9780470767603.ch24 · Cited by 25
Mothers’ beliefs about children’s learning in Hong Kong and the United States
Ng, F. F., Pomerantz, E. M., & Lam, S. (2013) · International Journal of Behavioral Development · doi:10.1177/0165025413483393 · Cited by 24
Why do Chinese adolescent girls outperform boys in achievement tests?
Gu, X., & Yeung, W. J. (2021) · Chinese Journal of Sociology · doi:10.1177/2057150x211006586 · Cited by 27
Bruckermann, C. (2017) · Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute · doi:10.1111/1467-9655.12611 · Cited by 23
Embracing Urbanity: Child Care Arrangements and Motherhood Anxiety in China’s Urban Transition
Dai, H. (2019) · Journal of Family Issues · doi:10.1177/0192513x19856659 · Cited by 22
Ge, L. (2025) · Feminist Theory · doi:10.1177/14647001251334949 · Cited by 26
“As observed by Fong (2002, 2004), singleton children, as the only hope for urban families, bear high or even unrealistic expectations and, at the same time, have access to more opportunities as part of their urban lives.”
Qiu, S. (2019) · Sociological Research Online · doi:10.1177/1360780419871574 · Cited by 22
Childhood in urban China: A three-generation portrait
Liu, J. (2021) · Current Sociology · doi:10.1177/0011392120985861 · Cited by 22
Parental Status and Subjective Well-Being Among Currently Married Individuals in China
Qian, Y., & Knoester, C. (2013) · Journal of Family Issues · doi:10.1177/0192513x13503323 · Cited by 21
Liu, Y. (2017) · Higher Education · doi:10.1007/s10734-016-0102-0 · Cited by 22
Strain as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Parental Attachment and Delinquent Participation
Liu, R. X. (2011) · International Criminal Justice Review · doi:10.1177/1057567711431127 · Cited by 23
Importing Western Childhoods into a Chinese State-Run Orphanage
Wang, L. (2010) · Qualitative Sociology · doi:10.1007/s11133-010-9151-3 · Cited by 22
From the Mountains and the Fields
Smart, A., & Zhang, L. (2006) · China Information · doi:10.1177/0920203x06070038 · Cited by 21
Wu, J. (2020) · Harvard Educational Review · doi:10.17763/1943-5045-90.1.26 · Cited by 24
Fong, V. L. (2008) · Culture Medicine and Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s11013-008-9112-4 · Cited by 21
Self-citationWarmenhoven, H., Hoebink, P. R. J., & Janssens, J. M. A. M. (2018) · Journal of Family Issues · doi:10.1177/0192513x18789208 · Cited by 21
The Cambridge Handbook of the International Psychology of Women
Cheung, F. M., & Halpern, D. F. (2020) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781108561716 · Cited by 24
Zhang, M. (2018) · Ethnography & Education · doi:10.1080/17457823.2018.1441733 · Cited by 24
Lin, S., Fong, C. J., & Wang, Y. (2017) · Social Psychology of Education · doi:10.1007/s11218-017-9367-0 · Cited by 23
Liu, N., Chen, Y., Yang, X., et al. (2017) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00423 · Cited by 20
Chen, B. (2019) · Journal of Child and Family Studies · doi:10.1007/s10826-018-01322-3 · Cited by 24
Wang, L., & Jiang, S. (2021) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-021-02426-8 · Cited by 21
Affecting relations: domesticating the internet in a south-western Chinese town
McDonald, T. (2014) · Information Communication & Society · doi:10.1080/1369118x.2014.924981 · Cited by 19
Spectacular Productions: Community and Commodity in the Beijing Olympics
Hubbert, J. (2010) · City & Society · doi:10.1111/j.1548-744x.2010.01033.x · Cited by 19
Feuchtwang, S., & Rowlands, M. (2019) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781108594875 · Cited by 62
The Intimate Individual: Perspectives from the Mother-Daughter Relationship in Urban China
Evans, H. (2012) · Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks · doi:10.1057/9781137268969_6 · Cited by 19
Rethinking Migrant Children Schools in China: Activism, Collective Identity, andGuanxi
Yu, M. (2018) · Comparative Education Review · doi:10.1086/698404 · Cited by 19
Liang, J. (2011) · Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology · doi:10.1007/s10823-011-9149-7 · Cited by 19
Liu, Y. (2021) · Work Employment and Society · doi:10.1177/09500170211016944 · Cited by 20
“I tried to control my emotions”: Nursing Home Care Workers’ Experiences of Emotional Labor in China
Yan, Z. (2022) · Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology · doi:10.1007/s10823-022-09452-4 · Cited by 18
Liu, F. (2010) · Comparative Education · doi:10.1080/03050068.2010.519483 · Cited by 18
How flexible gender identities give young women advantages in China’s new economy
Kim, S. W., Brown, K.-E., & Fong, V. L. (2018) · Gender and Education · doi:10.1080/09540253.2016.1274380 · Cited by 18
Self-citationWaves of Publications on Chinese Women and Gender Studies
Zurndorfer, H. T. (2018) · NORA - Nordic Journal of Feminist and Gender Research · doi:10.1080/08038740.2018.1528998 · Cited by 17
Kaiser, G., & Zhu, Y. (2022) · Asian Journal for Mathematics Education · doi:10.1177/27527263221091373 · Cited by 23
Po Xi Wen Ti:The “Mother-in-Law Problem”
Lim, S., & Lim, B. K. (2012) · International Journal of Systemic Therapy · doi:10.1080/08975353.2012.705649 · Cited by 17
ICT's impact on family solidarity and upward mobility in translocal China
Lam, S. S.-K. (2012) · Asian Journal of Communication · doi:10.1080/01292986.2012.739186 · Cited by 17
How Chinese Newlyweds’ Experiences as Singletons or Siblings Affect Their Fertility Desires
Zhang, C., Yang, A. Z., Kim, S. W., & Fong, V. L. (2020) · The China Quarterly · doi:10.1017/s0305741020001101 · Cited by 17
Self-citationInventing the ‘authentic’ self: American television and Chinese audiences in global Beijing
Gao, Y. A. (2016) · Media Culture & Society · doi:10.1177/0163443716635870 · Cited by 17
Brothers and Sisters in China: No Longer the One-Child Family
Chen, B., & Tan, J. (2020) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-55985-4_11 · Cited by 17
Wang, Y., & Lim, S. S. (2020) · Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication · doi:10.1093/jcmc/zmaa012 · Cited by 16
Relational Dignity, State Law, and Chinese Leftover Women’s Choices in Marriage and Childbearing
Liu, Q. (2021) · Asian Journal of Law and Society · doi:10.1017/als.2020.43 · Cited by 17
Family obligation in Chinese adolescents: Consequences and parental antecedents
Yang, B., Chen, B., Chen, X., Hu, Z., & Qu, Y. (2024) · Journal of Research on Adolescence · doi:10.1111/jora.12923 · Cited by 20
Ji, Q., Currin-McCulloch, J. A., Zhang, A., Streeter, C. L., Jones, B. L., & Chen, Y. (2017) · Journal of Pediatric Oncology Nursing · doi:10.1177/1043454217723862 · Cited by 16
Pettier, J. (2016) · Anthropology of Consciousness · doi:10.1111/anoc.12054 · Cited by 17
The Mobility of the Elderly and Family-Based Care: A Case Study of Chinese Migrant (Grand)Parents
Zhao, Y., & Huang, Y. T. (2021) · IMISCOE research series · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-67615-5_2 · Cited by 16
Li, Y., Devlieghere, J., Li, J., & Vandenbroeck, M. (2022) · European Early Childhood Education Research Journal · doi:10.1080/1350293x.2022.2098995 · Cited by 16
“Although some ethnographic research, such as the works of Fong (2004), Goh (2011), Xu (2017), and Way et al. (2013) focuses on exploring parenting styles in urban China with an overview of the socio-political and cultural factors, we know little about rural parents’ perceptions on their relations…”
BackgroundZhao, X., & Gao, M. (2014) · Journal of Adolescent Research · doi:10.1177/0743558413520225 · Cited by 15
The Maternal in the City: Outdoor Advertising Representations in Shanghai and London
Orgad, S., & Meng, B. (2017) · Communication Culture and Critique · doi:10.1111/cccr.12171 · Cited by 15
Troubling Children’s Families: Who Is Troubled and Why? Approaches to Inter-Cultural Dialogue
McCarthy, J. R., & Gillies, V. (2017) · Sociological Research Online · doi:10.1177/1360780417746871 · Cited by 15
Yi, K., Ming-yi, K., Li, D., Wang, Z., Bai, J., Xu, H., & Ma, S. (2020) · BMC Medical Education · doi:10.1186/s12909-020-1935-x · Cited by 16
Testing the talented child: Direct-to-consumer genetic talent tests in China
Au, L. (2021) · Public Understanding of Science · doi:10.1177/09636625211051964 · Cited by 14
Disenchantment and participatory limits of compulsory education: lessons from Southwest China
Wu, J. (2012) · Compare A Journal of Comparative and International Education · doi:10.1080/03057925.2012.672254 · Cited by 16
New rules of the game? Education and governmentality in Chinese migration to Poland
Kardaszewicz, K. (2019) · Asian and Pacific migration journal · doi:10.1177/0117196819877004 · Cited by 15
How Chinese Children Spend Their Time
Xu, H., & Minca, E. (2008) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-8329-7_18 · Cited by 16
Aid and affect in the friendships of young Chinese men
Strickland, M. A. (2010) · Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9655.2009.01599.x · Cited by 15
Fong, V. L., Zhang, C., Kim, S. W., Yoshikawa, H., Way, N., Chen, X., Lu, Z., & Deng, H. (2012) · Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks · doi:10.1057/9781137268969_5 · Cited by 15
Self-citationShen, W., Liu, Y., Liu, Y., et al. (2021) · Studies in Higher Education · doi:10.1080/03075079.2021.1946030 · Cited by 14
Wang, Z., Fan, C., & Niu, J. (2023) · International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance · doi:10.1007/s10775-023-09591-1 · Cited by 22
“Pursuing higher education has become a trend for Chinese students in recent years, a trend which is influenced in current society by Confucian culture (Bao & Haas, 2009; Fong, 2004; Liu & Lu, 2011) as well as intensive competition for work.”
Shi, L. (2013) · Culture Medicine and Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s11013-013-9351-x · Cited by 14
Confronting puzzles in understanding Chinese family change: A personal reflection
Whyte, M. K. (2020) · Chinese Journal of Sociology · doi:10.1177/2057150x20941363 · Cited by 14
Medical Anthropology and Mental Health
Kleinman, A. (2012) · Duke University Press eBooks · doi:10.1215/9780822395478-008 · Cited by 22
Wang, X., & Feng, X. (2021) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.610482 · Cited by 15
For the Sake of Parents? Marriages of Convenience between Lesbians and Gay Men in China
Cai, M. (2023) · LGBTQ+ Family An Interdisciplinary Journal · doi:10.1080/27703371.2023.2172509 · Cited by 14
Social eating patterns, identity and the subjective well-being of Chinese teenagers
Veeck, A., Yu, H., Zhang, H., Hong, Z., & Fang, Y. (2018) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/ejm-10-2017-0758 · Cited by 13
Anthropology and the Study of Disability Worlds
Rapp, R., & Ginsburg, F. (2012) · Duke University Press eBooks · doi:10.1215/9780822395478-011 · Cited by 16
Ng, J., & Nyland, B. (2017) · European Journal of Higher Education · doi:10.1080/21568235.2017.1388186 · Cited by 13
Zhang, L., & Smith, C. A. (2024) · Discourse & Communication · doi:10.1177/17504813241237377 · Cited by 14
“In China, there has traditionally been a cultural emphasis on children as future economic providers or the family where parents seek to create opportunities, in turn putting a heavy burden on the child (Chan and Lee, 1995; Fong, 2004).”
Min, X., Liu, X., & Zhang, H. (2024) · Media and Communication · doi:10.17645/mac.8762 · Cited by 12
Bregnbæk, S. (2015) · Critical Sociology · doi:10.1177/0896920515604476 · Cited by 12
“Middle‐aged Old Mothers” in China: Childrearing Anxiety, Humor, and the Narrative Self
Xu, J. (2022) · Ethos · doi:10.1111/etho.12327 · Cited by 12
Hubbert, J. (2013) · Modern China · doi:10.1177/0097700413481764 · Cited by 12
Metadata
- Authors
- Fong, V. L.
- Corresponding author
- Fong, Vanessa L.
- Venue
- Stanford University Press eBooks
- Publisher
- Stanford University Press
- Published
- 2004-02-17
- OpenAlex
- W4301657077
- Cited by
- 607
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 44 · 2025: 60 · 2024: 25 · 2023: 33 · 2022: 37 · 2021: 41 · 2020: 85 · 2019: 34 · 2018: 33 · 2017: 26 · 2016: 23 · 2015: 12 · 2014: 26 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 31
- FWCI
- 7.76
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Stanford University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › China's Socioeconomic Reforms and Governance
- Keywords
- one-child policy, only children, fertility transition, family relationships, intergenerational support, elderly care, social competition, parental involvement, youth values, China
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review