High- vs. low-stake choices in life: How does modernization predict the multidimensional shifts of individualism in China

doi:10.3724/SP.J.1041.2025.1468

Abstract

Abstract:

The shifts of individualism have long been a topic of academic attention. However, existing research on the shifts of individualism in China has yielded conflicting results.

The present article suggests that such discrepancies may arise from the use of different measurement indicators for individualism across studies, and it is proposed that the practical manifestations of individualism can be categorized into two types based on daily life choices: individualistic high-stake choices (HSC, involving high opportunity costs) and individualistic low-stake choices (LSC, involving low opportunity costs), with modernization having a stronger impact on individualistic HSC than on individualistic LSC.

Study 1, through a questionnaire survey (N = 312), examined the Chinese participants’ perception of the significance of various life choices. The results revealed that life choices such as marriage, divorce, having children, and living apart from parents were significantly different from life choices of naming a newborn (male or female), showing that the former were individualistic high-stake choices whereas the latter represented individualistic low-stake choices.

Study 2, through analyzing 30 years of panel data from 26 provinces in China, demonstrated: 1) Individualism (including HSC and LSC) at the provincial level in China generally showed an upward trend, and modernization significantly positively predicted both types of individualism; 2) Compared to individualistic LSC, modernization showed stronger predictive power for individualistic HSC, along with smaller interprovincial differences in the prediction trend.

Taken together, by categorizing the measurement of individualism from the perspective of life choices, this study offers a new theoretical perspective for re-examining the shifts of individualism both within China and around the globe.

Key words: individualism, multidimensional shift, modernization, the perspective of life choices, the provincial level in China

LIU Pan, QIU Lin, XIE Tian, REN Xiaopeng. (2025). High- vs. low-stake choices in life: How does modernization predict the multidimensional shifts of individualism in China. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 57(8), 1468-1481.

Figures/Tables 17

References 53

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No.	Item Content
1	The choice of ____ rarely occurs in one’s lifespan.
2	The possible outcomes of the choice of ____ are uncertain.
3	The choice of ____ involves much consideration.
4	The choice of ____ relates to personal morals or values.
5	The choice of ____ requires significant investment of resources.
6	The choice of ____ rules out many other options.
7	The choice of ____ affects multiple areas of life.
8	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s interpersonal relationships.
9	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s economic situation.
10	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s lifestyle.
11	The choice of ____ affects many people.
12	The choice of ____ has long-term consequences.
13	Once the choice of ____ is made, it is difficult to undo or take back.

No.	Item Content
1	The choice of ____ rarely occurs in one’s lifespan.
2	The possible outcomes of the choice of ____ are uncertain.
3	The choice of ____ involves much consideration.
4	The choice of ____ relates to personal morals or values.
5	The choice of ____ requires significant investment of resources.
6	The choice of ____ rules out many other options.
7	The choice of ____ affects multiple areas of life.
8	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s interpersonal relationships.
9	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s economic situation.
10	The choice of ____ greatly affects one’s lifestyle.
11	The choice of ____ affects many people.
12	The choice of ____ has long-term consequences.
13	Once the choice of ____ is made, it is difficult to undo or take back.

Life Choice Type	Factor
Life Choice Type	1	2
Whether to get married	0.86
Whether to get divorced	0.63
Whether to have children	0.70
Whether to live apart from parents	0.48
Naming newborn boys		0.91
Naming newborn girls		0.90

Life Choice Type	Factor
Life Choice Type	1	2
Whether to get married	0.86
Whether to get divorced	0.63
Whether to have children	0.70
Whether to live apart from parents	0.48
Naming newborn boys		0.91
Naming newborn girls		0.90

Modernization Indicators		1	2	3	4	5
GDP per capita	1	—
Urbanization rate	2	0.71^***	—
Higher education attainment rate	3	0.83^***	0.77^***	—
Illiteracy rate	4	?0.56^***	?0.63^***	?0.47^***	—
Composite index	5	0.90^***	0.90^***	0.89^***	?0.77^***	—
Mean		9015.48	0.38	0.02	15.36	0
SD		11972.44	0.18	0.02	12.05	0.86