Several factors should be considered before the restrictions are lessened. The relaxation of the policy will only be considered if there is an ample amount of evidence showing that low fertility rates will be sustained. Current studies show that China is transitioning into a small family culture. In 30 pilot counties the policy has been lifted, allowing couples to choose their family size (Poston, 2002, p333-47). However, the National Family

China's One-Child Policy In 1981 the Chinese government implemented the reproductive health program, also known as the one-child policy. This policy was intended to limit the number of births per family in order to stem a growing concern about over-population. This paper takes the position that while the population in China has stabilized, the overall effect of the policy has been detrimental to the nation in the long-run. Chinese officials insist

Ethnographic/Social Considerations Hall (1987) examined the effects of the one child policy from a cultural/anthropological and ethnographic perspective. Her study revealed that such policies unwittingly result in a cultural change in attitudes, beliefs and even behaviors exhibited by children. For example, couples may lean toward the decision that having more than one child "cramps their economic style" and that may lead to the one child being spoiled and the 'babyhood' period

Advanced technology played a big role in infanticide as it allowed couples to check the gender of the child before it was born. Ultrasounds helped couples check the sex of their child and allow them to make a decision on abortion easier. Infanticide managed to unbalance the sex ratio in china as there were far too many males and not so many females. Women do not have a big

Parents are aware that the competitive economy combined with the pressure to succeed means they must push their children. Schools and teachers are also under tremendous pressure to perform. "Some schools link teacher pay to student test performance, and the pressure on teachers is intense" (Chang 2008:5). However, despite the economic gains of recent years, there is also a profound sense that something has been lost of China's native culture.

The attitude of being the "Little Emperor." Albeit, normally disappears by the time the child from the one child family begins working when an adult. Child psychologist David Elkind Ph.D. (2009), Professor Emeritus of Child Development at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, asserts in the article, "The only child," that many of the currently adolescent singletons regularly presenting with a variety of social and behavioral problems (¶ 1). This social