Left Behind Children in Rural Areas in China Essay

Introduction

Left behind kids refers to young people (18 years) who are left behind by their parents when they leave to work in urban areas. The children live under the care of their relatives especially grandparents or family friends who live in rural areas. UNICEF (2014) estimates China has the largest number of children who live without their parents in rural areas. In 2010, 106 million children were affected by migration in China. Thirty-six million children moved to urban areas while almost 70 million were left behind with their relatives in rural areas UNICEF, 112). According to Sun et al (2015) left-behind-children lack economic and social amenities that are available in towns. Moreover, most of these kids experience emotional and developmental problems due to lack of interaction with their biological parents (Sun, et al 231). These children face social problems such as depression, abuse, injury, death, and violence. They also face other challenges such as physical health, quality education, and healthy social interactions. Leaving them alone or with rant parents makes them suffer emotionally, and end up dropping out of school. In modern China, parent's rural-to-urban migration affects the lives of a significant proportion of China's children.

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Factors leading to left-behind-children in China

Left-behind-children is a major social problem in China caused by increased rural-to-urban migration. In 2011, the Chinese National Bureau of Statistic estimated that 221 million people have migrated to urban areas. It also reported that approximately 65 million children aged between 0-17 were left in the care of kin when their parents moved in the cities for economic reasons (Zhang 62). There are many factors that have fueled rural-to-urban migration. Sun et al (2015) Reform and Open Policy increases the number of children left behind in rural areas. The policy encourages poor peasants to move to urban regions to seek for well-paying jobs and improve their economic status.

The high rate of unemployment is another factor making parents leave their children in rural areas. There is no land to cultivate in rural areas because of the conversion of agricultural land to development. The rural workers are left with no jobs forcing them to seek employment in rural areas (Jingzhong, and Pan 360). The demand of labor in the cities is high due to industrialization and the abolishment of the Hokuo system that prohibited people from moving into the cities have also played significant roles in increasing the number of children who live without their parents in rural areas (Jingzhong and Pan 370).

Challenges facing left-behind-children

Studies indicate that left-behind-children experience psychological problems such as depression, introversion, anxiety, and loneliness (Zhang 65). These children are vulnerable to mental disorders due to lack of emotional negligence, parent's support, and trauma. These problems may make these children to experience anti-social behaviors such as drug abuse, aggression, and violence. Most research carried out on the left-behind-children show that there is a relationship between physical separation and physiological problems experienced by the child. Qiaobing Wu conducted a research on psychosocial changes of Chinese migrant children, and the results indicated that life satisfaction and self-esteem develop when a child has a close interaction with the parent. On the other hand, lack of close interaction between a child and parent causes aggression and depression (Wu 160). During the early stages of child development, it is important for them to be emotionally supported to develop a sense of stability. Children left by their parents at tender ages experience severe psychological problems because they were not emotionally supported (Wu 164).

The physical health of left-behind-children in China is significantly low. Gao at el (2010) conducted a study on the consequences of parental migration on health and found the children had poor health. Low physical well-being was caused by poor health, drug abuse, and lack of exercise. When parents migrate to the cities, the children are left by their grandparents who have no income to buy food and other necessities. They do not know how to take care of children, and therefore their poor parenting strategies affect the lives of children (Gao at el 56). These caregivers are also busy with rural activities such as farming hence they have no time to take care of the left-behind-children.

Gao at el (2010) study on the impact of parent migration reports low academic performance, absenteeism, and high dropout rates among left behind kids. Moreover, they experienced poor teacher-student interaction compared to those brought up by their parents. Children require guidance and support to excel in their academics, thus if there are no parent support children fails in their studies (Gao at el 56). The caregivers also mistreat them by forcing them to work for long hours in farm and housework which take the time that they would use to study. Psychological challenges such as depression and low self-esteem also disrupt their concentration on academics (Jingzhong and Pan 370).

Poor social interaction is another challenge facing left-behind-children in China. The left-behind children are more withdrawn than those who are raised by parents. These children are introverted due to feelings of loneliness and anguish they experience when their parents move into towns. At an early age, children do not have the reasoning to understand that their parents are looking for employment (Gao at el 56). They feel abandoned and often question whether the parents love and care for them. They are not able to relate to others because they think that they do not deserve attention or are unworthy. Some tend to be aggressive and often start fights with others due to the physiological difficulties. The left-behind-children faces threats from the surroundings because they do not have a parent to protect them. They suffered from injuries such as burn, slashes, attacks from people and animals, and rape (Gao at el 56).

Conclusion

In conclusion, left-behind-children are those left under caregivers when their parents migrate to urban areas for economic reasons. The number of children who are left under caregivers in China continues to increase and studies show that the number can increase in few years to come. Lack of well-paying job in rural areas is the main factor why people move to urban centers. When children are left in rural areas, they experience several challenges such as poor physical health due to poor nutrition. These children also suffer from physiological problems such as depression, loneliness, and anxiety which affect their academic performance. These children face social problems such as depression, abuse, injury, death, and violence. They also face other challenges such as physical health, quality education, and healthy social interactions. Parents should live with their parents to offer them emotional support as they grow. The Chinese government should pass a policy that prohibits parents from leaving their children in rural areas to deal with this major social problem affecting Chinese families.

Works Cited

UNICEF. 2014. Children in China: an atlas of social indicators. Beijing: United Nations Children's Fund.112

Sun, Xiaojun, et al. "Psychological development and educational problems of left-behind children in rural China." School Psychology International 36.3 (2015): 227-252.

Jingzhong, Ye, and Pan Lu. "Differentiated childhoods: impacts of rural labor migration on left-behind children in China." The Journal of peasant studies 38.2 (2011): 355-377.

Zhang, Donghui. "The rural-urban divide, intergroup relations, and social identity formation of rural migrant children in a Chinese urban school." International Studies in Sociology of Education 27.1 (2018): 60-77.

Gao, Y., Li, L. P., Kim, J. H., Congdon, N., Lau, J., & Griffithss, S. (2010). The impact of parental migration on health status and health behaviors among left behind adolescent school children in China. BMC Public Health, 10(56)

Wu, Qiaobing. "Effects of social capital in multiple contexts on the psychosocial adjustment of Chinese migrant children." Youth & Society 49.2 (2017): 150-179.