Socio-demographic and Religious Factors Affecting Fertility Rate among Childbearing Women in Easter Iran: A Population-based Study

Abstract

Background & aim: The reduction of fertility rate in the recent years in Iran may be due to the cultural and socioeconomic development in this country. The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship of fertility rate with demographic, socioeconomic, and religious factors among childbearing women in a city in Easter Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 254 childbearing women in Torbat Heydariyeh, Iran, in 2016. The data were collected using a demographic questionnaire and scale of religiosity developed by Khodayari Fard (2000). Mann-Whitney U test, Spearman correlation, and general linear model were used to assess the relationships between variables Results: The mean number of children among women was 1.85±0.99. Fertility rate showed a direct relationship with age, age of spouse, and duration of marriage. There was an indirect relationship between age at marriage and fertility rate (P=0.001). Also, fertility rate was significantly correlated with education (P=0.001) and the mean total score of religiosity and its three dimensions (p <0.05). Based on the general linear model, women’s age, age of spouse, age at marriage, and level of education could predict 54% of the fertility rate variance (p <0.05). Conclusion: According to the findings, fertility rate was significantly associated with couple’s age, age at marriage, and educational level among the women of reproductive age in Torbat Heydariyeh. Therefore, policy makers should focus on the moderation of these variables to influence population growth.