Research Points to 1980 as Year of Turning Point in China's Generation Gap

Nov 13, 2015 12:15 PM EST

(Photo : Photo by China Photos/Getty Images) A woman and a young boy walk by senior citizens rehearsing for their public Christmas performance in Shanxi province, A research paper has highlighted a potential generation gap between Chinese people born before the One Child policy came into effect in 1980, and those born after that period.

Pew Research, an American think tank, published a report on Thursday about the generation gap in China. The paper roughly divides the Chinese population into two groups, those born in 1980 and onwards and those born before that date.

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1980 is significant in China's history because it was the year that the One Child Policy was put into law.

Those born before 1980 are around 35 years old and older. They represent the slight majority or more than half of the Chinese citizens today.

These are the people who lived through historical and violent upheavals in China. First, there was World War II, then the civil war between the Kuomintang and Communist forces, as well as the late Mao Tse Tung's era and the Cultural Revolution.

During the Cultural Revolution, almost a quarter of China's population were under the age of 35 and around 6 out of 10 were under the age of 25.

The other half of the Chinese people were born in 1980 and after. This younger population usually have no sibling and were almost certainly pampered by their parents and grandparents. Unlike the older generation, they lived through China's peaceful and prosperous times.

The post-1980 generation have access to a variety of information through the internet and are proficient users of technology. However, they have also grown dependent and attached to their mobile phones and social media. Their exposure to western ideas and concepts make them view countries such as the United Sates more positively in contrast to the pre-1980 generation.

Fortunately, there are some things that both generation agree to. They all believe that living in China today is certainly far better than before. Around 70 percent of all the Chinese surveyed regardless of their age, agree that their own economic outlook is sound at the moment.

Pew Research is a United States based organization that conducts surveys and research regarding issues and events that greatly influences people in America and the rest of the world.

TagsChina generation gap, pre 1980 China, post 1980 China, cultural revolution, old chinese, young chinese, One Child Policy, China generation gap