Foreign News
Parents in China Are Paying to Send Adult Children to Behaviour Centres
According to a new article by The Diplomat, a growing number of adults in China are being confined in private “behaviour correction” institutions by their own families, highlighting the expansion of an industry once associated primarily with treating so-called internet addiction.
The report, written by journalist Lina Ma, describes how these facilities are increasingly targeting adults whose personal choices—from romantic relationships and careers to gaming habits and sleeping schedules—conflict with parental expectations, raising concerns over personal liberty and the enforcement of Chinese law.
Music Student Taken To Correction Centre
One of the cases highlighted involved a 21-year-old music student in Beijing who arrived at an apartment complex in March to teach a piano lesson.
According to Southern People Weekly, she was met by her father, aunt and two employees of a private disciplinary institution. Her relatives allegedly told her the strangers were police officers investigating a family matter. Instead, they forced her into a vehicle, confiscated her phone and transported her hundreds of miles to a facility in Henan province.
She spent 11 days there after her parents reportedly objected to her romantic relationship and believed she had become difficult to manage.
The institution reportedly charged 26,800 yuan (around $4,000) for six months or 36,800 yuan for a year, including accommodation.
Adults Increasingly Becoming Targets
The Diplomat report notes that the case reflects a broader transformation within China’s behavioural intervention industry.
A July investigation by China Newsweek documented several adults placed in similar institutions by their own families. One 21-year-old man said his parents wanted to “correct” his sleeping habits, while a 25-year-old woman reported being taken from Jiangxi to a disciplinary institution in Hubei after relatives entered her home and confiscated her phone.
Another investigation by Jiemian News found adults as old as 33 living alongside teenagers in behavioural correction schools.
From Internet Addiction To Behavioural Control
These institutions first emerged during the 2000s amid concerns over youth “internet addiction.”
Many became notorious for military-style discipline and reports of physical punishment before rebranding themselves as family education centres, behavioural intervention programmes or youth development organisations.
According to The Diplomat, the industry has now expanded beyond teenagers to include adults whose lifestyles or personal decisions conflict with family expectations.
Reasons for intervention reportedly include romantic relationships, unemployment, gaming, unconventional careers and irregular sleeping habits.
Legal Questions Remain
China’s Criminal Law states that unlawfully depriving another person of their liberty is punishable by up to three years in prison.
A June commentary by The Beijing News argued that contracts authorising “military-style management” cannot override criminal law and are legally invalid if they violate personal freedoms.
However, enforcement appears inconsistent.
The report cites the case of Lyu Jin, who was intercepted by police after his mother hired five men to transport him to a correction facility because she disapproved of his gig work and unmarried status.
Although police stopped the vehicle, they allowed it to continue after being shown an authorisation letter signed by his mother, despite Lyu being a legal adult.
A Growing Industry
Legally, Chinese citizens become adults at 18, and parents have no authority over where their adult children live or whom they date.
Yet, The Diplomat argues that traditional family expectations continue well beyond adulthood, particularly for only children, creating demand for institutions that provide parents with a way to regain control.
These facilities offer transportation, isolation, restricted communication and tightly supervised daily routines, effectively carrying out forms of control that parents can no longer legally impose themselves.
As long as parental agreements continue to shield these practices from stronger legal scrutiny, the report suggests the industry is likely to keep expanding.
(with inputs from Reuters)
