Anti-natalist policy
Governments do not only count their populations. Many try to change them. Some want more babies born, and others want fewer. China's one-child policy is the best-known attempt by a government to cut births. It shaped family life in a country of more than a billion people for almost 40 years.
A government policy designed to reduce the birth rate, for example by limiting how many children a couple may have.
The opposite approach, encouraging births, is covered in the lesson on government policies and population composition.
China makes a strong case study for three reasons:
- the policy was strict and closely enforced by the state
- it lasted a long time, from 1979 until 2016
- its consequences are still visible in China's population today
That combination lets you judge what an anti-natalist policy can achieve, and what it can cost.
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