Fertility and Economic Change in Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century Europe: A Comment

Abstract

There is a sensible economic interpretation for the rise in English fertility in the eighteenth century and the subsequent decline in the nineteenth century. Smith attributes changing fertility rates in England to the process of household formation. An economic interpretation means that the long-run increase and decline in fertility can be related to changes in the economic enviroment that influence marriage and fertility behavior. There is a positive association between population growth and the beginnings of industrialization. A demographic increase in fertility in the latter half of the eighteenth century despite the fall in real wages is attributed to a continuation of the earlier trend. Another explanation is the growth of rural industry. This contributed to lower age at marriage. It may have led to higher marital fertility rates. Industrialization introduced higher marital fertility. Children became an economic asset. Where industrialization per se did not stimulate fertility the opportunity to migrate toward industrializating regions may have. Proletarianization is the shift from self-employment with control over production means to wage work for others. In late eighteenth century England industrialization led to further proletarianization of the work force. The decline in fertility is explained by Caldwell; a shift in wealth flows in families with children leads to labor fertility. Families could have more productive children by educating them for professions. Type of employment influenced fertility through its effect on family structure. Urbanization--as distinct from industrialization--acted to lower fertility as did child labor laws and the rising importance of education.