A recent survey of women in 20 large and medium-sized cities across the
country revealed that about half of the respondents were happy with their
marriages and relationships, while nearly 30 percent said they were bored
and 3.4 percent said they were in agony.
Three percent said they were worried about their relationships and 12
percent said they did not know how to describe their mixed feelings.
The Huakun Women Survey Center, an affiliate of the All-China Women's
Federation, conducted the survey of 2,000 women aged between 20 and 60 at
the end of last year. Altogether, 1,955 valid questionnaires were
collected.
The average age of the surveyed women was 35, and 70 percent were
married. About 57 percent of the respondents had monthly incomes ranging
from 1,000 yuan to 3,000 yuan.
Women in Shanghai seemed to have the most fulfilling love lives, with
more than 70 percent saying they felt happy. They were followed by women
in Beijing, Qingdao, Ningbo and Tianjin in terms of fulfilment.
The survey also revealed that marriages tended to get less happy the
longer they lasted.
Women rated responsibility to family, consideration and good taste as
the most important qualities in a spouse, while a high income, promising
career and nice appearance ranked fifth, eighth and 11th, respectively.
The responses to the questions focusing on issues of mental health were
also revealing. Seventy-two percent of the respondents said they felt
anxiety occasionally, and 16 percent said they frequently worried.
The respondents aged between 30 and 50 years old were the most worried,
with 20 percent saying they were regularly plagued with nervousness.
Changsha, Chongqing and Nanning had the highest ratios of worried
women, while Kunming and Dalian had the lowest ratios.
Pressure from work, problems with their children's education and tough
personal relationships were the main causes of nervousness, according to
the results of the survey.
