printThe Narrative of “Fear of Marriage”Among Young Men in China (a textual analysis based on Zhihu platform materials)
Yidi Hu
Cand. Sci. (Sociol.), Senior Lecturer, Institute of Foreign Languages, Southeast University, PRC huyidi2019@163.com
Jing Li
Cand. Sci. (Philol.), Senior Lecturer, Institute of Foreign Languages, Southeast University, PRC lijing_zina@outlook.com
The article was supported by the funding of Yidi Hu from the Start-up Research Fund of Southeast University (RF1028624210) and the Social Science Research Fund of Jiangsu Province (25SHC001), and by Jing Li, supported by the Start-up Research Fund of Southeast University (RF1028624080).
Yidi Hu, Jing Li The Narrative of “Fear of Marriage”Among Young Men in China (a textual analysis based on Zhihu platform materials). Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. 2026. No 1. P. 102-114
In recent years, China has witnessed a steady decline in its marriage rate revealing an underlying sense of anxiety toward marriage among the younger generation. This paper focuses on the subjective interpretations of marriage by young men. Using Python, we collected highly upvoted responses from the Q&A platform Zhihu related to the topic of “men’s fear of marriage.” Through KH Coder’s text-mining tools – specifically, word frequency statistics and co-occurrence network analysis – we examine the core themes and underlying meanings within these public narratives. The analysis showed that the discrepancy between the instrumental meaning of marriage in reality and the cultural ideal of “marriage for love,” the structural tension of gender roles in modern society, and the dilemma between “starting a family” and “pursuing a career” together produce a multidimensional narrative of marriage anxiety among young men.
Ilzakova N. V. (2019) Features of the Legal Regulation of the PRC in the Field of Marriage and Family
Relations. Socialnaya kompetentnost [Social Competence]. Vol. 4. No. 2(12): 106–111. EDN: RBMUIX.
(In Russ.)
Klupt M. A. (2019) Family in Russia and China: Between Reforms and Tradition. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya
[Sociological Studies]. No. 5: 65–75. DOI: 10.31857/S013216250004957-5. (In Russ.)
Cheng Huirong, Huang Guobin, Zheng Lin. (2015) Comparison of Software for Unstructured Text Analysis:
KH Coder vs. Wordstat. Library and Information. No. 4: 110–117+122. (In Chinese)
Du Ping. (2025) “Matched Love”: Urban Men’s Perception and Reconstruction of the Meaning of Marriage [J].
Collection of Women’s Studies. No. 1: 53–65. (In Chinese)
Fang Xiangxin. (1993) Familism and Population Control. Population Research. 1993. No. 1: 41–45. (In Chinese)Fei Xiaotong. (1998) From the Soil: The Foundations of Chinese Society. Beijing: Peking University Press.
(In Chinese)
Hu Jieren, Qin Yiming. (2021) Psychoanalytic Perspective on Youth Fear of Marriage in China: Analysis Based on
Zhihu Confessions. Journal of East China University of Science and Technology (Social Sciences Edition). No.
4: 91–102. (In Chinese)
Liu Yiran. (2023) Love and Social Change in China: Using Emotional Structure as the Analytical Framework. Xuehai.
No. 5: 156–165+202. (In Chinese)
Liu Dawei, Ji Haojie, Yin Pu. (2023) The Logic Behind Youth Dowry Conflicts in Online Discourse. Southeast
Academic Research. No. 4: 175–185. (In Chinese)
Mu Guangzong. (2020) Contemporary Youth’s Anxiety About Childbearing. People’s Forum. No. 22: 120–122.
(In Chinese)
Shi Renbing, Wang Jun. (2023) Changes in Chinese Marriage and Childbearing Culture and Its Demographic
Impact. Population Research. (6): 78–90. (In Chinese)
Wu Xiaoying. (2009) The Transformation of Gender Discourse in the Context of Marketization. Chinese Social
Sciences. (2):163–176. (In Chinese)
Wu Xiaoying. (2013) Disenchantment of Marriage and Shifting Notions of Family. Exploration and Free Views.
(5):18–20. (In Chinese)
Yan Yunxiang. (2000) The Flow of Gifts: Reciprocity and Social Networks in a Chinese Village. Shanghai: Shanghai
People’s Publishing House. (In Chinese)
Yang Ya, Jin Liping. (2023) Questioning and Appeal: A Study on the Emotional Discourse of “Fear of Marriage”
Among Young Internet Users. Contemporary Youth Research. No. (4): 65–77. (In Chinese)
Yu Jia. (2022) What Makes a Family: Marriage and Childbearing in China’s Second Demographic Transition.
Collection of Women’s Studies. No. (5): 47–69. (In Chinese)
Yu Jia, Xie Yu. (2013) Social Transition and Changes in the Determinants of Marriage Formation: A quantitative
study of Chinese urbanites. Sociological Studies. No. (4): 1–25+242. (In Chinese)
Zhai Xuewei. (2017) Romantic Love and Predestined Marriage: Comparing Two Ideal Types of Intimacy.
Sociological Studies. No. 2: 128–149+244. (In Chinese)
Zhang Xiaoqing. (2004) Understanding Modern Women’s Fear of Marriage. Society. (11): 47–48. (In Chinese)
Zuo Jiping, Jiang Yongping. (2009) Urban Women’s Work and Family in Social Transformation. Beijing:
Contemporary China Publishing House. (In Chinese)
Coontz S. (2005) Marriage, a History: From Obedience to Intimacy or How Love Conquered Marriage. New York:
Viking Penguin.
Croll E. (1981) The Politics of Marriage in Contemporary China. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Higuchi K. (2014) Quantitative Text Analysis for Social Researchers: A Contribution to Content Analysis. Kyoto:
Nakanishiya Shuppan:???.