CRI听力:Why Many People Are still Single

Reporter: According to the figures released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the number of Chinese getting married between 20 and 24 years old accounted for 35.5 percent of last year's total marriage registrations. The figure has decreased by about 1.1 percentage points annually.

When asked about why it's hard to find a girl to build a family with, one man says this:

"Our society is very materialistic. Everyone wants big brand name commodities. For people who need to focus on work to survive, it's hard to satisfy someone with materialistic needs. One mandatory condition women have when searching for a husband is that the man has to own property. But I believe that if a young man can earn money and has potential, he will own property in due time."

Likewise, one woman gives her opinion about why some men are still single.

"Some of them are narcissistic. They don't know what kind of girl they want to choose to build a family with; and some are immature. They still want to play, or they care more about their career."

Fan Aiguo, secretary general of the China Association of Marriage and Family Studies, says there are actual reasons for the massive amount of men in the country that are still bachelors.

"Owning property puts a lot of pressure on young people; property prices are still at a high level. We did a survey in 2010 that showed 70 percent of female respondents believed their future husband should possess property. But given the sky-high real estate prices, which may be as high as several million yuan, men in their 30s or 40 may still need to rely on their parents just to make the down-payment. Then, it takes a long time for them to pay off the mortgage. The pressure from society to own property is enormous."

According to an online survey by match-making website Baihe.com, last year, 90 percent of the site's female members hoped their future husbands to earn more than 8,000 yuan per month. The reality is that the average monthly income in China is less than 5000 yuan, even in most developed areas.

Zhou Xiaozheng, a sociologist, gives another reason why many men remain single in China:

"Most singles in their 20s and 30s grew up as a single child. One of the most serious defects of the single-child generation is that they never grew up with a sibling, and thus lack consideration for others. Not having a sibling affects their mental and psychological growth, and they become self-centered adults."

Zhou's opinion is echoed by a consultant at Baihe.com. She says many of their registered members don't know how to handle marriage related problems, like how to love and build a family. They take it for granted that they already paid the membership fee and can thus get what they want, which is their ideal spouse in return.

China's sixth nationwide census in 2010 shows that the ratio of unmarried men to women was 136 to 100 for those born after 1980; for those born after 1970, the ratio was about 206 to 100.

For CRI, I am Li Dong.