Study: Two kids most desirable for families Young adults often say sex before marriage OK, but many lack facts

The universal second-child policy adopted in 2016 is proving popular among young adults, with almost 60 percent saying they want to have two children, a study has found.

The Report on Contemporary Young People’s Viewpoints on Marriage and Love, which was released on Monday, said the most desired family pattern for Chinese young adults — defined as people 19 to 35 — is “parents plus children”. Almost 70 percent of young males said life is incomplete without marriage.

Carried out by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China, the survey found only 6 percent of respondents wanted to live a double-income-no-kids lifestyle.

The findings were based on a monthlong study of more than 3,000 people. About 42 percent of the respondents were male, and more than half were single. Some 84 percent had college degrees and about one-fourth were from rural areas.

The report said the group values “internal compatibility” in choosing partners. More than 80 percent regard moral standing as the most important criterion for dating, and 70 percent believe character comes first.

The vast majority would choose to remain single and wait if they fail to meet the “right” person. Less than 10 percent said they were willing to lower their criteria, though another 5 percent would settle for a marriage, the report said.

More than half the respondents believe online dating is “unreliable”. About threefourths prefer to be introduced to potential dates by acquaintances or at social gatherings, NGOs or Communist Youth League activities. About 11 percent said they would meet their dates through social mobile apps.

Young males are more likely to take the initiative when starting a relationship, the report said. Almost threefourths of male respondents said they would pursue desirable females, compared with only 30 percent of females saying they would pursue males.

The study also found that Chinese young people lack sexual knowledge. Half of respondents said they “know a bit” about protected sex, with almost 20 percent not sure if what they know was correct. Only about one-third were confident they know enough for safe sex.

Around 77 percent of male respondents said they were OK with premarital sex, while 47 percent of the females said so.