Research

PEER-REVIEWED PAPERS

* CN - Published in Chinese

• How is the Discourse on Fertility Constructed on the Internet? (CN, pdf)

Author: Ting,Li, Jie Hua, Andi Wang

【Abstract】As China undergoes a dramatic demographic transition, fertility has become an important issue at the intersection of national development and personal life. Meanwhile, the rise of social media provides a unique opportunity to understand the fertility attitudes of the reproductive-age group. Based on more than 240,000 texts from four different social media platforms, this paper attempts to explore the construction of the discourse system around fertility issues on the Chinese internet. Using machine learning with supervised classification, the article identifies that discussions on fertility are highly concentrated on three themes: “present fertility situation and trends”, “causes of childbearing dilemmas”, and “fertility support policies”. These themes constitute the basic structure of the fertility discourse on the internet. In the face of the declining fertility rate, the tension between the public nature of population issues and the privatization of reproductive behaviour sets the emotional tone of the fertility discourse. The discussion of childbearing dilemmas further reveals that the current low fertility level is both cost-constrained and value-oriented with multiple dilemmas closely intertwined. As a result, the call for a comprehensive support system has become the most important policy demand of the online public. The mixed public-private narrative mode of fertility issues and the tensions behind it are shaped by social transformation, the process of individualization, and the rise of social media. The possible path to solving the current low-fertility dilemma lies in the re-establishment of public-private linkage between the population issue and fertility behaviour.

• Temporal-Spatial Pattern of One-Person Households in China (CN, pdf)

Author: Ting,Li, Jie Hua, Chengrong Duan

【Abstract】Exploring the temporal-spatial evolution of one-person households (OPH) promotes the understanding of the transformation of families in China. Utilizing the 1% sampling data from the population censuses, this study aims to describe the temporal-spatial patterns of OPH in China and the related influencing factors over the past 20 years. Results reveal three main characteristics: the eastern coastal economic belt, developed cities, and the Qinghai-Tibet region exhibit relatively higher OPH percentages; rapid growth initially occurred in the eastern and northeastern regions before spreading nationwide; overall growth is primarily driven by youth, but has evolved towards an elderly pattern spatially. The GTWR model further indicates that the modernization process, along with China's demographic transformation, has shaped this pattern, influenced by both subjective willingness and passive choices. In light of this new trend, efforts should focus on promoting family-oriented internal migration, alleviating the youth marriage squeeze, and enhancing the pension system in a multi-dimensional manner.

• SES Differences in Intergenerational Transmission of Health Behaviors (CN, pdf)

Author: Yanbi,Hong, Jie Hua

【Abstract】Based on Cockerham’s Health Lifestyle Theory, this paper discusses whether there are Social Economic Status (SES) differences in intergenerational inheritance of health behaviors. Using Bayesian Structural Equation Model, drawing upon the dataset of “China Health and Nutrition Survey 2015” (CHNS2015), this study reveals that the adolescents with high family socioeconomic status show a pattern of inclining towards positive health behaviors and avoiding inheriting risky behaviors. Although there is no direct correlation between parental positive health behaviors and children’s positive health behaviors, parents’ strong health beliefs encourage their children to develop positive health behaviors. Meanwhile, high family socioeconomic status and strong health belief decreases children’s propensity of inheriting parents’ risky health behaviors. If health behaviors can be intervened in the early stage of individual’s life, it may help to break the class solidification and promote social mobility.

CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

• Jie Hua, and Ting Li. 2024. “Temporal-Spatial Patterns of One-Person Households in China: 2000-2020”
  — Annual Meeting of PAS (Population Association of Singapore), Singapore.

• Jie Hua, and Pu Yan. 2023. “Shifting Demands and Responses in Reproductive Issues”
  — Annual Meeting of CSA (Chinese Sociological Association), Section on Computational Sociology, Tianjin, China.

• Ke Li, Jie Hua, and Pu Yan. 2023. “‘The Algorithm Knows Too much about Me!’ Public Understanding of Content Recommendation Algorithms on Chinese Social Media Platforms”
  — IC2S2 International Conference on Computational Social Science (Poster), Copenhagen, Denmark.

• Jie Hua, and Ting Li. 2023. “Polarization or Diversification? Social Media’s Influence on Attitudes towards Marriage and Fertility”
  — Annual Meeting of ASA (American Sociological Association), Section on Communication, Information Technologies, and Media Sociology (Roundtable), Philadelphia, U.S..

• Jie Hua. 2022. “Divide between Self-Presentation and Searching Strategy in Chinese Online Dating”
  — Annual Meeting of CPA (China Population Association), Section on Marriage and Childbearing Behavior and Attitudes of Youth in the New Era, virtual.

• Jie Hua, Ralph Schroeder, and Pu Yan. 2022. “‘Female boxers’ vs ‘Feminists’: Mapping Feminist Controversies across Different Chinese Social Media Platforms”
  — Annual ICA (International Communication Association) Conference, Communication and Technology Division, virtual.

• Jie Hua, and Yanbi Hong. 2019. “Group Distinction and Mate Selection Criteria between First-time and Remarried People”
  — Annual Meeting of CSA (Chinese Sociological Association), Section on Cutting-edge and Interaction of Quantitative Sociological Research, Yunnan, China.