Princess sickness, alternatively known as princess complex, princess syndrome or princess disease (Vietnamese: bệnh công chúa; Chinese: 公主病; pinyin: gōng zhǔ bìng; Cantonese Yale: gūng jyú behng; Korean: 공주병; Revised Romanization: gong ju byeong), is a neologism used colloquially in East and Southeast Asia to describe a condition of narcissism and materialism in women, or "princess" behaviour.[1][2] Conversely but less commonly, men with a similar outlook may be described as having "prince" sickness.[3]
It is speculated that the term originated with the rise of the Four Asian Tigers across Asia, in which rapid economic growth may have contributed to a corresponding rise in consumerist or materialistic attitudes and upper classes investing heavily in their children, who might subsequently become accustomed to material wealth and domestic help.[3][4]
In Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, low birth rates have meant that families often have only children who are the sole focus of their parents' energies.[5] In Mainland China, the resultant phenomenon, often attributed to the former one-child policy, is known as the 'Little Emperor Syndrome'. A combination of helicopter parenting and the presence of domestic workers, allowing middle-class parents to work, can contribute to their children being spoiled.[6] A widening income gap in Hong Kong, along with concerns over democracy and social inequality, also reflects the perceived attitudes of the 'elite' classes.[7][8]
Furthermore, social mobility in East Asia is primarily based on personal and academic achievement.[9] For that reason, parents may place a great deal of academic pressure on both children and their teachers, micro-managing their child's academic career to achieve higher grades.[10][11] Some suggest that this results in dependence or a lack of responsibility.