Chinese only children and loneliness: Stereotypes and realities.

Abstract

Popularmedia has aroused concern that Chinese only children are growing up lonely owing to their lack of sibling interaction Mu et al. (2007). However, little research has been directed at determining whether Chinese adults believe in the only-child-as-lonely stereotype and whether Chinese only children actually suffer more loneliness than their peers with siblings. Three studies were conducted to examine belief in the only-child-as-lonely stereotype and determine whether only children report greater loneliness than children with siblings. With the first study, the prevalence of the only-child-as-lonely stereotype among young adults from six cities (Study 1, N = 588) was examined. The results showed that belief in this stereotypical perception was common among young Chinese adults, particularly those who had siblings. We then examined the validity of this stereotype by analyzing data from three samples, consisting of Chinese emerging adults (Study 2, N = 699) and late adolescents (Studies 3.1 and 3.2, N = 345 and 210, respectively). Results from Studies 2 and 3 consistently showed that, contrary to the stereotype, Chinese only children reported lower levels of loneliness than their counterparts with siblings. Additionally, open-ended responses from the adolescent participants in Study 3 provided hints about the situations that provoke their loneliness. The results are explained in terms of the two theoretical approaches to loneliness. In sum, our research suggests that belief in the loneliness of only children is widespread in Chinese society, but the evidence indicates that reports of loneliness are greater for those who grew up with siblings.