Changing sexual attitudes and behaviour in China

Implications for the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases

Bibliographic Data

ID19440407
AuthorsKai Zhang (0000-0002-7401-2931, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College), E J Beck (0000-0001-9675-8921), Ellen Beck
Year1999
Volume11
Issue5
Pages581-589
Publication date1999-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAIDS Care (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0954-0121 • E-ISSN: 1360-0451
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/09540129947730
PMID10755033
OpenAlexW2019178728
LanguageEN
Citations received87
References cited12

In Imperial China sexual behaviour was regarded as an indispensable activity to reach harmony with the universe, through the unity of the interaction of two opposing forces: yin and yang. Sexual intercourse was accepted when linked to procreation within a family context, while an individual's sexuality was not considered important. Homosexuality was tolerated although not advocated, while masturbation was denounced. Since the One Child Family and Open Door policies in the 1970s and the economic reforms of the 1980s, attitudes towards sexuality in China have changed. Premarital sex has become widely accepted among young people and people in China are now more tolerant toward extramarital sex. Nowadays young people consider that love should dominate marriage and the quality of an individual's sex life is currently more valued than it used to be. Attitudes towards masturbation have become more tolerant and though homosexuality has been hidden by society for a long time, in recent years it has begun to be considered as a legitimate lifestyle choice. Attitudes towards sex and sexual behaviour have become recognized as an individuals' responsibility as long as no offence occurs against society or the interests of other individuals, resulting in the recognition of diversity of sexual behaviour. As part of the changing attitudes to sex and sexual behaviour, heterosexual transmission is becoming the most important route of HIV transmission in China. This is complicated by the internal migration of an estimated 120 million labourers moving from the countryside to the cities as the result of economic reforms, most of whom are sexually active young men. Unless addressed directly, these factors may add to the estimated 300,000 HIV-infected Chinese, further fuelling an already rapidly spreading epidemic. The ramifications of the Chinese HIV epidemic will not only be felt within China, but also within the surrounding Asian countries thereby fuelling the HIV pandemic

China · Geography · Homosexuality · Human sexuality · Political science · Population · Premarital sex · Sexual intercourse · Sexual revolution · Sociology · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Demography · Gender Studies · HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk · Law · Psychology · Sex work and related issues · Social Psychology