The full impact of China’s population control programs is uncertain. Only time will tell whether the benefits of reduced population growth achieved through severe social and economic pressures for one-child families will be worth the cost of a harsh break with traditional family norms and perceptions regarding the value of children. Resistance in rural areas, where well over 60% of the population still resides, was apparently so widespread that in August 1988, when the Chinese government discovered to its surprise that the population had already passed the 1 billion mark, it decided to increase its enforcement of the one-child norm in rural as well as urban areas. However, popular opposition again caused it to relax its stringent controls slightly and to focus more on elevating the status of women and providing greater old-age security.