Photo: VCG
Falling in love, getting married, raising a family, sitting in rocking chairs to while away the gold years, may be stereotypical romantic scenes in old movies but they no longer attract today's youths in China. For many of them, "virtual lovers" are their choice for company and consolation.
This new take on love reflects a "de-marriage" trend among some groups of young people. This fear for marriage, experts say, could be because a growing number of women no long need a marriage partner.
Considered "more convenient and cost-efficient," online dating games, chat buddies, and a variety of virtual products trying to fill the emotional void of today's young people have flourished on China's internet in recent years, an article published in Ban Yue Tan, a magazine subsidiary to Xinhua said on Sunday.
Over 80 percent of purchasers of such products are women, according to the article. A 24-year-old female netizen explained that it is more of an outlet for negative emotions than seeking a relationship. "It's hard for me to find a boyfriend in real life due to various factors, but at the same time I crave company. A virtual boyfriend can give you such care without adding to your burden."
In contrast to women who value communication in a relationship, male users see it more as an emotional sustenance.
Experts noted that such phenomenon is a result of the mounting pressures of work and life, and a pace way too fast for today's young people to commit to a serious relationship.
"Socioeconomic developments have enabled women with more opportunities in choosing life paths, empowering them to rely less on marriage," Luo Ruixue, an expert on feminism and gender equality, told the Global Times on Sunday.
Another factor that led to the "de-marriage" is the growing cost of raising children, said Luo.
What's more, a series of crimes concerning rapes, domestic violence, and even murders, have scared some women away from marriage, observers noted.
However, opposing voices believe that virtual relationships won't last because they are simply "not real ones." Jun Yixiao, a 31-year-old single woman working in Beijing told the Global Times that "the warmth that one feels in such relationships is only services that he or she bought. Once the service is over, one will feel devastated."
Nevertheless, Jun said she will neither get married because of pressure from society or seek a companion out of boredom or loneliness.