Contraception use and fertility aspiration among currently married young men in India: Do gender attitudes matter?

Abstract

There is extensive research on the relationship between women’s attitudes to gender equality and fertility aspirations and use of contraception. However, there are few studies on the relationship between men’s attitudes about gender equality and their ideal family size and contraceptive use. The study described here tries to address this gap using data from the recent round of National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) to examine the association between men’s gender attitudes and contraceptives use and ideal family size. Descriptive statistics, logistic regression, and multiple linear regression techniques were applied in the study. Results show that gender attitudes were associated with the men’s perceptions about ideal family size and contraceptive use. Men who showed more tolerance of the practice of wife beating are more likely to support the ideal of large families and low use of contraceptives. This view is independent of education level, income, and religion. This finding points to the need for the government to address men’s beliefs and attitudes in its interventions to reduce fertility.