Due to a continuous decline in fertility rates in recent decades, the number of one-child families has been increasing in both developing and developed countries. Given this significant shift in family structure, it is imperative to investigate the complex dynamics of how the number of children within a family—whether it is a one-child family or a family with multiple children—affects parents’ decision-making in the realm of education. Using a mixed-method approach including seven main studies, among them a secondary data analysis (Study 1) and a field study (Study 2), and four supplementary studies, the authors consistently find that, compared with multichild parents, one-child parents have a stronger relative preference for deficit-based over strength-based educational products. Both mediation and moderation analyses suggest that this effect is driven by one-child parents’ heightened parenting prevention focus. The current research not only enriches our understanding of parenting dynamics, educational decision-making, and parenting regulatory focus but also has implications for a myriad of disciplines, including marketing, psychology, economics, and sociology. More importantly, it carries substantial implications for marketers, educators, and policy makers.
AllenMarcia Ellen McGuire (1975), “The Only Child,” master’s thesis, Department of Child Development and Family Relations, Southern Illinois University, https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED118253.pdf.
2.
AndewegSuzanne M.BodrijF. FennePrevooMariëlle J.L.RippeRalph C.A.AlinkLenneke R.A. (2021), “Does Sensory-Processing Sensitivity Moderate the Effect of Household Chaos on Caregiver Sensitivity? An Experimental Design,” Journal of Family Psychology, 35 (3), 356–65.
3.
AndreLucijaPeetsmaThea T.D.van VianenAnnelies E.M.Jansen in de WalJoostPetrovićDanijela S.BunjevacTomislav (2019), “Motivated by Future and Challenges: A Cross-Cultural Study on Adolescents’ Investment in Learning and Career Planning,” Journal of Vocational Behavior, 110, 168–85.
4.
AviramRon B. (2014), “The Family Is the First Social Group, Followed by the Clan, Tribe, and Nation,” in Fairbairn and the Object-Relations Tradition, ClarkeGraham S.ScharffDavid E., eds. Routledge, 471–82.
5.
BaoXiaojiaGalianiSebastianLiKaiLongCheryl Xiaoning (2023), “Where Have All the Children Gone? An Empirical Study of Child Abandonment and Abduction in China,” Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, 208, 95–119.
6.
BaumSandyMaJenniferPayeaKathleen (2013), “Education Pays: The Benefits of Higher Education for Individuals and Society,” The College Board.
7.
BeersmaBiancaHomanAstrid C.van KleefGerben A.De DreuCarsten K.W. (2013), “Outcome Interdependence Shapes the Effects of Prevention Focus on Team Processes and Performance,” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 121 (2), 194–203.
8.
BellmanStevenPotterRobert F.RobinsonJenny AVaranDuane (2021), “The Effectiveness of Various Video Ad-Choice Formats,” Journal of Marketing Communications, 27 (6), 631–50.
9.
BlakeJudith (1981), “The Only Child in America: Prejudice Versus Performance,” Population and Development Review, 7 (1), 43–54.
10.
BriersBarbaraHuhYoung EunChanElaineMukhopadhyayAnirban (2024), “Intergenerational Effects of Lay Beliefs: How Parents’ Unhealthy = Tasty Intuition Influences Their Children’s Food Consumption and Body Mass Index,” Journal of Consumer Research, 50 (6), 1074–96.
11.
BrussoniM.,OlsenL.L. (2013), “The Perils of Overprotective Parenting: Fathers’ Perspectives Explored,” Child: Care, Health and Development, 39 (2), 237–45.
CarterSusan B.RansomRoger L.SutchRichard (2003), “Family Matters: The Life-Cycle Transition and the Antebellum American Fertility Decline,” in History Matters: Essays on Economic Growth, Technology, and Demographic Change, SundstromWilliamGuinnaneTimothyWhatleyWarren, eds. Stanford University Press, 271–327.
14.
ChanfreauJennyGoisisAlice (2024), “Patterns of Help and Care by Adult Only Children and Children with Siblings,” Ageing & Society, 44 (1), 200–223.
15.
ChenJie-QiGoldsmithLynn T. (1991), “Social and Behavioral Characteristics of Chinese Only Children: A Review of Research,” Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 5 (2), 127–39.
16.
ChenQihuiWangYajinZhangYing (2024), “Developing Strengths or Remedying Weaknesses? How Perceived Social Mobility Affects Parents’ Purchase Preferences for Children’s Educational Products,” Journal of Marketing, 88 (5), 46–62.
17.
ChenXiaojingAnLeYangSongfan (2016), “Zapping Prediction for Online Advertisement Based on Cumulative Smile Sparse Representation,” Neurocomputing, 175, 667–73.
18.
ChowEsther Ngan-lingZhaoS. Michael (1996), “The One-Child Policy and Parent-Child Relationships: A Comparison of One-Child with Multiple-Child Families in China,” International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 16 (12), 35–62.
19.
DamianLavinia E.StoeberJoachimNegruOanaBăbanAdriana (2013), “On the Development of Perfectionism in Adolescence: Perceived Parental Expectations Predict Longitudinal Increases in Socially Prescribed Perfectionism,” Personality and Individual Differences, 55 (6), 688–93.
20.
DayCreina (2015), “Skill Composition, Fertility, and Economic Growth,” Review of Income and Wealth, 61 (1), 164–78.
DowneyDouglas B. (1995), “When Bigger Is Not Better: Family Size, Parental Resources, and Children’s Educational Performance,” American Sociological Review, 60 (5), 746–61.
23.
DuranteKristina M.GriskeviciusVladasReddenJoseph P.WhiteAndrew Edward (2015), “Spending on Daughters Versus Sons in Economic Recessions,” Journal of Consumer Research, 42 (3), 435–57.
24.
EganSarah J.PiekJan P.DyckMurray J. (2015), “Positive and Negative Perfectionism and the Big Five Personality Factors,” Behaviour Change, 32 (2), 104–13.
25.
EiserChristineEiserJ. RichardGrecoVeronica (2002), “Parenting a Child with Cancer: Promotion and Prevention-Focused Parenting,” Pediatric Rehabilitation, 5 (4), 215–21.
26.
FeiXianzhengYouYanfenYangXiaojing (2020), “‘We’ Are Different: Exploring the Diverse Effects of Friend and Family Accessibility on Consumers’ Product Preferences,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 30 (3), 543–50.
27.
FrostRandy O.MartenPatriciaLahartCathleenRosenblateRobin (1990), “The Dimensions of Perfectionism,” Cognitive Therapy and Research, 14, 449–68.
28.
GauthierAnne Hélène (1996), The State and the Family: A Comparative Analysis of Family Policies in Industrialized Countries. Clarendon Press.
29.
GeorgeLinda K.GoldDeborah T. (1991), “Life Course Perspectives on Intergenerational and Generational Connections,” Marriage & Family Review, 16 (1–2), 67–88.
30.
Girio-HerreraErinOwensJulie SarnoLangbergJoshua M. (2013), “Perceived Barriers to Help-Seeking Among Parents of At-Risk Kindergarteners in Rural Communities,” Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology, 42 (1), 68–77.
31.
GlassGeorge S.TabatskyDavid (2014), The Overparenting Epidemic: Why Helicopter Parenting Is Bad for Your Kids … and Dangerous for You, Too!Skyhorse Publishing.
32.
HaaseAnne M.PrapavessisHarryOwensR. Glynn (2002), “Perfectionism, Social Physique Anxiety and Disordered Eating: A Comparison of Male and Female Elite Athletes,” Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 3 (3), 209–22.
33.
HancockKirsten J.LawrenceDavidZubrickStephen R. (2014), “Higher Maternal Protectiveness Is Associated with Higher Odds of Child Overweight and Obesity: A Longitudinal Australian Study,” PLoS One, 9 (6), e100686.
34.
HayesAndrew F.PreacherKristopher J. (2014), “Statistical Mediation Analysis with a Multicategorical Independent Variable,” British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology, 67 (3), 451–70.
35.
HeXin (2016), “When Perfectionism Leads to Imperfect Consumer Choices: The Role of Dichotomous Thinking,” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 26 (1), 98–104.
36.
HeckmanJames J. (1979), “Sample Selection Bias as a Specification Error,” Econometrica: Journal of the Econometric Society, 47 (1), 153–61.
37.
HertwigRalphDavisJennifer NerissaSullowayFrank J. (2002), “Parental Investment: How an Equity Motive Can Produce Inequality,” Psychological Bulletin, 128 (5), 728–45.
38.
HiemstraDjoerdvan YperenNico W. (2015), “The Effects of Strength-Based Versus Deficit-Based Self-Regulated Learning Strategies on Students’ Effort Intentions,” Motivation and Emotion, 39 (5), 656–68.
39.
HigbeeJeanne L. (1993), “Developmental Versus Remedial: More Than Semantics,” Research and Teaching in Developmental Education, 9 (2), 99–107.
40.
HigginsE. Tory (1997), “Beyond Pleasure and Pain,” American Psychologist, 52 (12), 1280–300.
41.
HopcroftRosemary L.MartinDavid O. (2014), “The Primary Parental Investment in Children in the Contemporary USA Is Education,” Human Nature, 25 (2), 235–50.
42.
HoweMargaret G.MadgettMaribeth E. (1975), “Mental Health Problems Associated with the Only Child,” Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal, 20 (3), 189–94.
43.
JohnsonPalmer OliverNeymanJerzy (1936), “Tests of Certain Linear Hypotheses and Their Application to Some Educational Problems,” Statistical Research Memoirs, 1, 57–93.
44.
JungJihyeMittalVikas (2021), “Political Identity and Preference for Supplemental Educational Programs,” Journal of Marketing Research, 58 (3), 559–78.
45.
KaiserRobert B.OverfieldDarren V. (2011), “Strengths, Strengths Overused, and Lopsided Leadership,” Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 63 (2), 89–109.
46.
KhadarooAmeerahMacCallumFiona (2021), “Parenting of Adolescent Single Children: A Mixed-Methods Study,” Journal of Family Issues, 42 (12), 2896–919.
47.
KitzmannKatherine M.CohenRobertLockwoodRebecca L. (2002), “Are Only Children Missing Out? Comparison of the Peer-Related Social Competence of Only Children and Siblings,” Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 19 (3), 299–316.
48.
LeeAngela Y.AakerJennifer L.GardnerWendi L. (2000), “The Pleasures and Pains of Distinct Self-Construals: The Role of Interdependence in Regulatory Focus,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78 (6), 1122–34.
49.
LeonardNancy H.HarveyMichael (2008), “Negative Perfectionism: Examining Negative Excessive Behavior in the Workplace,” Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 38 (3), 585–610.
50.
LeungJanet Tsin Yee (2022), “Conceptualization of Self-Oriented Parenting Perfectionism and Its Associations with Parents’ Wellbeing Among Chinese Parents,” Applied Research in Quality of Life, 17 (6), 3517–40.
51.
LiYexin JessicaHawsKelly L.GriskeviciusVladas (2019), “Parenting Motivation and Consumer Decision-Making,” Journal of Consumer Research, 45 (5), 1117–37.
52.
LiangJianpingJiangHongyanCotteJune (2019), “Upward Intergenerational Influences on Parents’ Innovativeness and Innovation Adoption: A Comparative Study of Single-and Multiple-Child Families,” Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 18 (4), 350–59.
53.
LiangYitianHuangZhongqiangSuLei (2023), “Too Time-Crunched to Seek Variety: The Influence of Parenting Motivation on Consumer Variety Seeking,” Journal of Marketing Research, 60 (4), 812–33.
54.
LiuChenyingMunakataTsunetsuguOnuohaFrancis N. (2005), “Mental Health Condition of the Only-Child: A Study of Urban and Rural High School Students in China,” Adolescence, 40 (160), 831–45.
55.
MinuchinPatricia (2002), “Looking Toward the Horizon: Present and Future in the Study of Family Systems,” in Retrospect and Prospect in the Psychological Study of Families, McHaleJames P.GrolnickWendy S.. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 259–78.
56.
MorrisDannyGarrettJill (2009), “Strengths: Your Leading Edge,” in Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology and Work, LinleyP. AlexHarringtonSusanGarceaNicola, eds. Oxford University Press, 95–106.
57.
NikiforidisLambrianosDuranteKristina M.ReddenJoseph P.GriskeviciusVladas (2018), “Do Mothers Spend More on Daughters While Fathers Spend More on Sons?” Journal of Consumer Psychology, 28 (1), 149–56.
58.
ParkJinaBaumeisterRoy F. (2015), “Social Exclusion Causes a Shift Toward Prevention Motivation,” Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 56, 153–59.
59.
QuinlanDeniseSwainNicolaVella-BrodrickDianne A. (2012), “Character Strengths Interventions: Building on What We Know for Improved Outcomes,” Journal of Happiness Studies, 13, 1145–63.
60.
RainsChristie Lee (2022), “Exploring the Perceptions and Experiences of Middle and High School Teachers in an Independent PreK-12 School in North Carolina: A Qualitative Case Study,” doctoral dissertation, Faculty of the School of Education and Human Services, Amridge University.
61.
RichardsHilaryGoodmanRobert (1996), “Are Only Children Different? A Study of Child Psychiatric Referrals: A Research Note,” Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 37 (6), 753–57.
62.
RobeyBryantRutsteinShea O.MorrisLeo (1993), “The Fertility Decline in Developing Countries,” Scientific American, 269 (6), 60–67.
63.
RosenbaumPaul R.RubinDonald B. (1985), “Constructing a Control Group Using Multivariate Matched Sampling Methods That Incorporate the Propensity Score,” American Statistician, 39 (1), 33–38.
Sauer-ZavalaShannonCassiello-RobbinsClairAmetajAmantia A.WilnerJulianne G.PaganDanyelle (2019), “Transdiagnostic Treatment Personalization: The Feasibility of Ordering Unified Protocol Modules According to Patient Strengths and Weaknesses,” Behavior Modification, 43 (4), 518–43.
66.
SchutteNicola S.MalouffJohn M. (2019), “The Impact of Signature Character Strengths Interventions: A Meta-Analysis,” Journal of Happiness Studies, 20, 1179–96.
67.
SeligmanMartin E.P.CsikszentmihalyiMihaly (2014), “Positive Psychology: An Introduction,” in Flow and the Foundations of Positive Psychology, CsikszentmihalyiMihaly, ed. Springer, 279–98.
68.
SewellWilliamShahVimal (1968), “Parents’ Education and Children’s Educational Aspirations and Achievements,” American Sociological Review, 33 (2), 191–209.
69.
SimmonsJoseph P.NelsonLeif D.SimonsohnUri (2011), “False-Positive Psychology: Undisclosed Flexibility in Data Collection and Analysis Allows Presenting Anything as Significant,” Psychological Science, 22 (11), 1359–66.
70.
SmithLinda B.ThelenEsther (1994), A Dynamic Systems Approach to the Development of Cognition and Action. MIT Press.
71.
SnellWilliam E.Jr.OverbeyGail A.BrewerA. Lauren (2005), “Parenting Perfectionism and the Parenting Role,” Personality and Individual Differences, 39 (3), 613–24.
72.
SngOliverNeubergSteven L.VarnumMichael E.W.KenrickDouglas T. (2017), “The Crowded Life Is a Slow Life: Population Density and Life History Strategy,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 112 (5), 736–54.
73.
Terry-ShortL.A.Glynn OwensR.SladeP.D.DeweyM.E. (1995), “Positive and Negative Perfectionism,” Personality and Individual Differences, 18 (5), 663–68.
74.
ThompsonVaida D. (1974), “Family Size: Implicit Policies and Assumed Psychological Outcomes,” Journal of Social Issues, 30 (4), 93–124.
75.
TuLingjiang LoraKwonJaeHwanGaoHuachao (2022), “Heart or Mind? The Impact of Power Distance Belief on the Persuasiveness of Cognitive Versus Affective Appeals in Education Marketing Messages,” Journal of Marketing Research, 59 (1), 173–90.
76.
VolkTonyAtkinsonJeremy (2008), “Is Child Death the Crucible of Human Evolution?” Journal of Social, Evolutionary, and Cultural Psychology, 2 (4), 247–60.
77.
WangD.KatoN.InabaY.TangoT.YoshidaY.KusakaY.DeguchiY.TomitaF.ZhangQ. (2000), “Physical and Personality Traits of Preschool Children in Fuzhou, China: Only Child vs Sibling,” Child: Care, Health and Development, 26 (1), 49–60.
78.
WatersLea (2015), “The Relationship Between Strength-Based Parenting with Children’s Stress Levels and Strength-Based Coping Approaches,” Psychology, 6 (6), 689–99.
79.
WeitzHenryWilkinsonH. Jean (1957), “The Relationship Between Certain Nonintellective Factors and Academic Success in College,” Journal of Counseling Psychology, 4 (1), 54–60.
80.
WightKelley GulloLiuPeggy J.ZhouLingruiFitzsimonsGavan J. (2024), “Sharing Food Can Backfire: When Healthy Choices for Children Lead Parents to Make Unhealthy Choices for Themselves,” Journal of Marketing Research, 61 (3), 451–71.
81.
WoolleyKaitlinSharifMarissa A. (2022), “Down a Rabbit Hole: How Prior Media Consumption Shapes Subsequent Media Consumption,” Journal of Marketing Research, 59 (3), 453–71.
XieQingHultgrenFrancine (1994), “Urban Chinese Parents’ Perceptions of Their Strengths and Needs in Rearing ‘Only’ Sons and Daughters,” Home Economics Research Journal, 22 (3), 340–56.
84.
XieYuZhouXiang (2014), “Income Inequality in Today’s China,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111 (19), 6928–33.
85.
YangJunyiHouXinWeiDongtaoWangKangchengLiYadanQiuJiang (2017), “Only-Child and Non-Only-Child Exhibit Differences in Creativity and Agreeableness: Evidence from Behavioral and Anatomical Structural Studies,” Brain Imaging and Behavior, 11 (2), 493–502.
86.
YoonSunyeeKimHyeongmin Christian (2018), “Feeling Economically Stuck: The Effect of Perceived Economic Mobility and Socioeconomic Status on Variety Seeking,” Journal of Consumer Research, 44 (5), 1141–56.
87.
ZhouXiangLeeRichard M.Wackerle-HollmanAlishaJohnsonLeAnnPinnaKeri (2022), “Construction and Initial Validation of the Parenting Regulatory Focus Scale,” Family Relations, 71 (3), 1081–101.
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
