Fertility Intentions Of Women Research Articles

Influencing Factors and Coping Strategies of Women's Fertility Intention under the Guidance of China's Development Policy

With the rapid development of China's social economy, people's living standards continue to improve. However, the willingness to have children has shown a downward trend, and the fertility rate has also declined. This phenomenon has attracted widespread attention from all sectors of society. This study aims to conduct an in-depth analysis of the influencing factors of women's fertility intentions under policy guidance. A questionnaire survey was conducted to investigate and analyze the current influencing factors of women's fertility intentions. Research has shown that policy orientation significantly affects women's reproductive decisions. Individual factors such as age, education level, and occupation, as well as family factors such as family income and place of residence, are closely related to fertility intentions. The dissemination channels of the fertility policy affect women's understanding of the policy, which in turn affects fertility decision-making. Obstacles in career development also affect women's consideration of childbirth. The social environment, especially family support, has a significant impact on women's reproductive decisions. Meanwhile, the balance between family and career is also an important factor affecting women's willingness to have children. Based on this, this article suggests further optimization and adjustment of the current fertility policy, such as improving maternity leave benefits, introducing flexible work arrangements, providing career development support, supporting fertility assistance services, and breaking workplace discrimination, to better meet the diverse fertility needs of women and promote sustainable social development.

Childcare Balancing Policy in Japanese Corporations and Women’s Fertility Intention

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the childcare balancing policy and women’s fertility intention in Japanese corporations. This paper constructed two logistic regression models based on data from the 2010 Japanese Life Course Survey of Youth to analyze the correlation between childcare balancing policies and women’s fertility intentions. The binary logistic regression method was used. The results showed that women’s fertility intention is negatively associated with the childcare balancing policy in Japanese corporations. This may be because the research object already had a child or children. The results indicate that the fertility intention of women who had a child or children was lower than those without children. This paper discovered that regular employees had higher fertility intentions than non-regular staff. This paper provides policymakers with valuable insights on establishing effective childcare policies to enhance women’s fertility intentions.

Assessing Fertility Behaviours In Manipur: Examining The 'Hills'-'Plains' Dichotomy

The latest data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) indicates that the total fertility rate (TFR) of Manipur is close to replacement level, standing at 2.2 children per woman. However, there's a notable contrast in TFR between the 'hill' and 'plain' regions within the state, which forms the major focus of this paper. Our study has two main objectives: firstly, to discern the determinants of TFR in Manipur and their divergence between the 'hills' and 'plains'; and secondly, to examine whether a preference exists for a specific sex of a child and its impact on a mother's future fertility intentions. Utilizing two econometric models—multiple linear regression and multinomial logistic regression—we reveal that TFR in the 'hill' regions exceeds replacement levels, while the 'plain' regions fall below. Furthermore, socio-demographic factors play a significant role in shaping the total fertility of a mother. Our study identifies that the preference for daughters exists, albeit to a lesser extent than for sons. The presence of at least one son in the family decreases women's future fertility intentions in Manipur.

Is the Combination of the Nationalities of the Couple Affecting Women’s Fertility Intentions? Insights from Italy

Literature on migrants’ fertility intentions has grown significantly in recent years. However, to the best of our knowledge, none of these studies has investigated the role that the combination of partners’ nationalities may play in individual’s intentions to have a(another) child. Filling this gap is particularly relevant for research because fertility behaviors tend to vary greatly according to the type of couple and fertility intentions have been identified as good predictors of future fertility behaviors. The central aim of this paper is to fill this gap unravelling and quantifying the influence of the selection, socialization and adaptation hypotheses in positive and certain fertility intentions of women in mixed (foreign woman-Italian man) and endogamous couples (Italian woman-Italian man, foreign woman-foreign man). Our results point out to migrant selectivity as a potential explanation for differences on fertility intentions between foreign women partnered to Italian men and foreign women partnered to foreign men. We also find support for adaptation observing that childbearing intentions of foreign women partnered to Italian men better resemble those of Italian women partnered to Italian men. However, there is a gradient on the explanatory power of the adaptation hypothesis according to the nationality of the foreign woman.

How do urban public health services affect rural migrant women's fertility intentions? A study based on the Mobile Population Dynamics Monitoring Survey in China

Public health service is an important guarantee by the government to safeguard the health rights of rural migrant women. This not only concerns the health status of rural migrant women and their willingness to stay in the urban area but can also affect their fertility intention. This study systematically examined the impact of public health services on the fertility intentions of rural migrant women as well as the mechanisms, underlying these intentions based on the data from the 2018 China Migration Dynamics Monitoring Survey. Urban public health services, including health records management and health education, could effectively enhance the fertility intentions of rural migrant women. Furthermore, their health status and willingness to stay in urban areas were important mechanisms, by which, the public health services could influence the fertility intentions of rural migrant women. Additionally, urban public health services have a better effect on improving the fertility desire of rural migrant women who have no pregnancy experience, a low income level, and a short residence time in the inflow area. This study contributed to the examination and clarification of the policy effects of public health services on the fertility intentions of rural migrant women. Additionally, it also provided important evidence to support the government policies related to the optimization of the public health service system, improvement of the health status, citizenship, and fertility intentions of the rural migrant women, as well as the development of the uniform public health services.

Patriarchal norms, partner pronatalism, and women's fertility intentions in Ghana.

Social norms influence many dimensions of women's lives and women's assumptions about male partners' pronatalism can have important associations with fertility behaviours. Using data on married/cohabiting women from the 2018/19 Ghana Socioeconomic Panel Survey and a series of robust descriptive analyses and logistic regression models, the links between women's internalization of patriarchal norms, presumed male partner pronatalism and fertility intentions are explored. The characteristics of conservative and liberal women are also examined. Logistic regressions show that greater internalization of patriarchal norms is associated with higher odds of women wanting more children- male children, particularly. Additionally, women's perceptions of their partners' fertility preferences were important- women who assumed that their male partners wanted more children tended to have stronger immediate pronatalist intentions themselves. Descriptive analyses show that conservative women, with greater internalized patriarchal norms, are more pronatalist, less educated, resident in rural parts of the country and more likely to be from poorer households, compared to their more liberal counterparts. Findings encourage the tailoring and targeting of family planning messages along cultural lines, to influence women's fertility intentions. Additionally, the importance of effective spousal communication is highlighted. Findings also emphasise the importance of involving men in the implementation of family planning programs.

Factors Associated with Fertility Intention among Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Government Hospitals of Kaski District, Nepal

COVID-19 has affected the reproductive health of women worldwide. Such effects were mainly on the reduction in child-birth, postponement of fertility plans and loss of lives of mothers and children as well as still births. The paper attempts to examine the factors associated with the impact of the pandemic on fertility intentions of women who are preparing to have a child even if they already had one or more children. Patient exit survey during 9 June 2022 to 8 July 2022 was conducted at selected hospitals among women who have visited an Obstetric and Gynaecological specialist at the Out Patient Department for consultation. Among 138 participant women who provided with oral informed consent to participate, 34 were infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-COV-2). The number of living children, gender of the children and the educational attainment of the mothers have been found to be significantly associated with change in fertility intention of women. A qualitative study is necessary to ascertain on why the number and gender of children is central to changes in fertility intentions at the times of the pandemic as such.

A Study on Chinese Women's Fertility Intentions in the New Era: A Literature Review

With the awakening of self-awareness and the pursuit of self-worth in women's groups, women are beginning to value themselves and to go out into society to seek their own development. In the new era, women's willingness to have children has begun to change and their view of fertility is gradually different from previous generations. This paper mainly reviews the research on the fertility intentions of Chinese women in the new era from the characteristics of the new era women group, the current situation, the causes of low fertility intentions, the factors affecting fertility intentions, the progress of the existing research, the complement of the existing research, and the countermeasures to solve the low fertility intentions.

The Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Fertility Intentions of Women with Childbearing Age in China.

On 31 May 2021, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China proposed the policy that a couple can have three children, and rolled out more supportive measures to further optimize the fertility policies. However, while the Chinese government is further optimizing its fertility policy, the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 is raging around the world, which threatens the implementation of China’s fertility optimization policy. Based on this, this paper firstly explores the impact of COVID-19 on women’s fertility intentions. Secondly, based on the Theory of Planned Behavior, this paper constructs a structural equation model to quantitatively reveal the specific factors that affect women’s fertility intentions under the epidemic, as well as their impact paths, and then puts forward corresponding suggestions for the government to solve the problem of fertility, aiming at delaying population aging and optimizing population structure. The research results show that: (1) COVID-19 lowers the fertility intentions of women of childbearing age. (2) During the pandemic, economic pressure emerged as the biggest factor affecting women’s fertility intentions. The decline in income caused by the pandemic has become an important factor in preventing women from having children. (3) The conflict between work and childbearing is still an important factor affecting the fertility intentions of women of childbearing age. The government’s provision of perfect childcare services and their strengthening of the protection of women’s employment rights and interests will greatly reduce women’s anxiety about childbearing.

The Formation and Realization of Fertility Goals Among a US Cohort in the Post-Recession Years.

The United States has experienced a sustained fertility decline, with those currently in their childbearing years facing unique constraints. Drawing from the Theory of Conjunctural Action and the Narratives of the Future framework, this work considers how objective and subjective socioeconomic conditions, psychosocial characteristics, and perceptions of well-being are linked to mothers' and childless women's (a) prospective fertility intentions during the Great Recession, (b) realization of those intentions in the post-Recession period, and (c) fertility intentions toward the end of the reproductive years, using Waves IV and V of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. The results confirm the role of standard socioeconomic measures and also highlight the importance of subjective measures. In general, more advantaged women were more likely to intend to have (more) children at both waves and to have children between waves. Furthermore, women who already had children by the Great Recession were more likely than their childless peers to have a(nother) child in the post-Recession period. As this cohort approaches the end of its childbearing years, having unfulfilled fertility plans from earlier in the reproductive life course is a strong predictor of continuing to intend at least one birth.

Fertility intentions to have a second or third child under China's three-child policy: a national cross-sectional study.

What proportion of people want to have a second or third child after the enactment of the three-child policy in China? Under the three-child policy, fertility intention to have a second child was ∼60% (56% of women vs 65% of men), and fertility intention to have a third child was 13% (10% of women vs 17% of men) among the Chinese population. The Chinese government announced the three-child policy on 31 May 2021, allowing all couples to have up to three children. At present, there is a lack of national surveys on the fertility intentions of women and men to have a second or third child under the three-child policy in China. In June 2021, a national cross-sectional survey including 9243 respondents aged 18-49 years was conducted online from 31 provinces in China's mainland using a random sampling method. Data on the intention to have a second or third child were collected by anonymous questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were performed to assess fertility intentions. Multivariate and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to assess the association between fertility intentions and the investigated factors. Approximately 60% (5493/9243) of the investigated people (55.6% women vs 64.7% men) intended to have a second child, and 13.0% (1203/9243) of them (10.0% women vs 17.1% men) intended to have a third child under China's three-child policy. For non-child respondents, 46.8% of women and 60.4% of men intended to have a second child. For one-child respondents, 47.8% of women and 53.8% of men intended to have a second child. For two-child respondents, 14.4% of women and 25.9% of men intended to have a third child. The mean desired family size was 1.58 children per woman, which was lower than the 1.76 children per man. Notably, the age-specified fertility intentions of men were always higher than those of women. Women with a college or higher degree (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.60, 95% CI 0.42-0.88) and a high-middle (aOR 0.71, 95% CI 0.53-0.95) or high (aOR 0.64, 95% CI 0.48-0.85) household income, as well as men living in urban areas (aOR 0.71, 95% CI 0.58-0.87) and having a high-middle household income (aOR 0.68, 95% CI 0.52-0.90), were associated with a lower intention to have a third child (all P < 0.05). In contrast, men of public service personnel had a higher intention to have a third child than factory workers (aOR 1.44, 95% CI 1.02-2.04, P < 0.05). Meanwhile, approximately one out of five two-child respondents intended to have a third child, while one out of four two-girl respondents (aOR 2.09, 95% CI 1.44-3.04) were willing to have a third child with a strong preference for boys (12.7% for boys vs 2.7% for girls). Economic and childrearing barriers were the leading barriers to having one more child. The online survey might limit the representativeness of the present study's sample. A large sample size was enrolled and a random sampling method was used to increase the sample diversity and representativeness. This study will assist in estimating the impact on population demographic of the three-child policy in China. Multiple efforts are needed to create a fertility-friendly environment for couples, thereby increasing fertility intentions to have one more child and increasing fertility rates. No funding. The authors declare no conflict of interest. N/A.

How Media Use Influences the Fertility Intentions Among Chinese Women of Reproductive Age: A Perspective of Social Trust.

BackgroundThe low fertility level has become a serious social problem in China. Previous research has argued the significant influence of media use and social trust on fertility intentions, but the interaction between the two variables and how they influence fertility intentions remain further investigation. This study explored the influence mechanism of media use on Chinese women's fertility intentions from the perspective of social trust.MethodsThis study collected data from the 2017 China General Social Survey, investigated the relationships between variables through bivariate correlation coefficients, and explored the differences in fertility intentions among women of reproductive age (20–49). Also, this paper examined the influence of media use and social trust by regression analysis and tested the mediating role of social trust between media use and fertility intentions with Bootstrap sampling.ResultsWomen with different media use preferences, education levels, and family incomes have significant differences (p < 0.01) in fertility intentions. New media use negatively influences women's fertility intentions, while traditional media use has no significant influence on women's fertility intentions. Social trust significantly influenced women's fertility intentions and partially mediated the impact of new media use on fertility intentions.ConclusionOnline communication influences fertility intentions among Chinese women of reproductive age. It tends to influence their social trust by amplifying negative social news, affecting their fertility intentions further. This paper suggests the importance of strengthening social trust and online agenda-setting to improve women's fertility intentions that strategic information communication can change their perceptions of social trust.

How do fertility intentions lead to contraceptive continuation among a cohort of family planning users who received services from the private sector in Nigeria

Background: The Federal Ministry of Health of Nigeria is exploring task sharing family planning (FP) services to Community Pharmacists (CPs) and Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMVs). Yet few studies have explored contraceptive continuation of clients who received FP services from pharmacies and drug shops. This paper uses longitudinal data and looks at women’s contraceptive continuation approximately nine months after they received FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Kaduna and Lagos states. Methods: Longitudinal data for this analysis come from an evaluation of the IntegratE project. 491 women were interviewed within 10 days after receiving a FP service from an IntegratE CP or PPMV and approximately nine months later. The dependent variable is contraceptive continuation at the follow-up interview and the independent variable is fertility intentions as reported at enrollment. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the association between fertility intentions and contraceptive continuation. Results: 89% of women continued using contraception approximately 9 months after the enrollment interview. Women who intended to have a child in more than two years were significantly more likely to continue using contraception compared to women who intended to have a child within two-years (AOR 2.6; 95% CI 1.1-6.1). Among women who were asked about the quality of care received, 93% said the CP/PPMV asked whether they wanted to have a/another child in the future and 85% said they were asked when they would like to have that child. Conclusion: The fertility intentions of women who seek FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Nigeria can predict contraceptive continuation. As Nigeria task shares FP services to CPs and PPMVs, training on comprehensive FP counseling will be essential for scale-up. Since many women continued using FP, CPs and PPMVs have the potential to expand access to, and support women’s continued use of, FP.

The impact of trade liberalization on individual fertility intention: Empirical evidence from China

AbstractHow trade liberalization affects a country's fertility has been verified by some studies, but little is known about how export trade liberalization impacts individual fertility intention. Using China Health and Nutrition Survey data from 1997 to 2011 and regression analysis, this study finds that a decline in the average external tariff significantly improves the fertility intentions of married women. This conclusion remains robust after overcoming endogeneity problems using an alternative external proxy variable, adopting different average tariff calculation methods, adding other control variables, and considering the son preference. The mechanism test shows that export trade liberalization can affect married women's fertility intentions by affecting family income; moreover, the income effect dominates the substitution and intra‐marital income gap effects. This study provides a new perspective for understanding changes in fertility intention in developing countries. This perspective can promote academic research progress in this field and be of great significance in formulating effective policies to improve fertility intention.

The role of family networks and social capital on women's fertility intentions in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

AbstractFamily solidarities remain strong in African societies. In Ouagadougou, transfers within extended family networks provide an omnipresent means for coping with life's difficulties, and the desired number of children remains relatively high. The role of family networks in maintaining high fertility is rarely studied however for lack of data in conventional demographic surveys. This study uses original retrospective data and logistic regression methods to explore the role of the extended family's social capital in shaping women's desire for children in Ouagadougou. Results show that women belong to three types of family networks: (1) women who belong to large family networks on both her own and her husband's side and who maintain a moderate number of close relations with their own relatives; (2) women who also belong to large family networks on both their and their husband's sides but who maintain a greater number of close relations with their own blood relatives; (3) unmarried women with relatives only on their side and numerous close relations with their family. Support for children's schooling comes more often from women's relatives in networks type 2 and 3, and from husbands' relatives in network type 1. Support for children's schooling increases with the level of economic resources in family networks (proxied by the presence of a public employee), in all network types. Women in type 2 networks (centered on women's relatives) are more likely to want additional children compared to women in type 1 networks (centered on their husband's relatives), after controlling for economic resources in networks. This result suggests that practical support provided by family members could play a role, on top of economic support, in encouraging high fertility in Ouagadougou.

How do fertility intentions lead to contraceptive continuation among a cohort of family planning users who received services from the private sector in Nigeria.

Background: The Federal Ministry of Health of Nigeria is exploring task sharing family planning (FP) services to Community Pharmacists (CPs) and Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMVs). Yet few studies have explored contraceptive continuation of clients who received FP services from pharmacies and drug shops. This paper uses longitudinal data and looks at women's contraceptive continuation approximately nine months after they received FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Kaduna and Lagos states. Methods: Longitudinal data for this analysis come from an evaluation of the IntegratE project. 491 women were interviewed within 10 days after receiving a FP service from an IntegratE CP or PPMV and approximately nine months later. The dependent variable is contraceptive continuation at the follow-up interview and the independent variable is fertility intentions as reported at enrollment. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the association between fertility intentions and contraceptive continuation. Results: 89% of women continued using contraception approximately 9 months after the enrollment interview. Women who intended to have a child in more than two years were significantly more likely to continue using contraception compared to women who intended to have a child within two-years (AOR 2.6; 95% CI 1.1-6.1). Among women who were asked about the quality of care received, 93% said the CP/PPMV asked whether they wanted to have a/another child in the future and 85% said they were asked when they would like to have that child. Conclusion: The fertility intentions of women who seek FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Nigeria can predict contraceptive continuation. As Nigeria task shares FP services to CPs and PPMVs, training on comprehensive FP counseling will be essential for scale-up. Since many women continued using FP, CPs and PPMVs have the potential to expand access to, and support women's continued use of, FP.

Fertility intention-based birth forecasting in the context of China's universal two-child policy: an algorithm and empirical study in Xi'an City.

After a universal two-child policy was introduced in China in 2016, studies have been published using women's fertility intentions to forecast future births; however, the recommended algorithms need to be improved. In this study, an algorithm based on the method of limiting factors is developed to retrospectively forecast annual births in Xi'an City in the first three years of policy implementation, i.e. 2016-2018. The 2015 Xi'an Fertility Survey (sample: 560 one-child mothers) showed that 17% of mothers intended to have a second child, 30% were undecided and 53% did not intend to do so at the end of 2015. The low forecast variant based on the updated algorithm indicates that there would be a baby boom in 2016-2018, but the annual births would increase by 13% at most. The forecasting results are basically consistent with the official reports on annual births. This study emphasizes the importance of appropriately adjusting all fertility intentions in birth forecasting, helps to understand women's fertility behaviour and evaluate the effects of implementing the universal two-child policy, and has important implications for China's population and family planning work.

How do fertility intentions lead to contraceptive continuation among a cohort of family planning users who received services from the private sector in Nigeria.

Background: The Federal Ministry of Health of Nigeria is exploring task sharing family planning (FP) services to Community Pharmacists (CPs) and Patent and Proprietary Medicine Vendors (PPMVs). Yet few studies have explored contraceptive continuation of clients who received FP services from pharmacies and drug shops. This paper uses longitudinal data and looks at women's contraceptive continuation approximately nine months after they received FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Kaduna and Lagos states. Methods: Longitudinal data for this analysis come from an evaluation of the IntegratE project. 491 women were interviewed within 10 days after receiving a FP service from an IntegratE CP or PPMV and approximately nine months later. The dependent variable is contraceptive continuation at the follow-up interview and the independent variable is fertility intentions as reported at enrollment. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the association between fertility intentions and contraceptive continuation. Results: 89% of women continued using contraception approximately 9 months after the enrollment interview. Women who intended to have a child in more than two years were significantly more likely to continue using contraception compared to women who intended to have a child within two-years (AOR 2.6; 95% CI 1.1-6.1). Among women who were asked about the quality of care received, 93% said the CP/PPMV asked whether they wanted to have a/another child in the future and 85% said they were asked when they would like to have that child. Conclusion: The fertility intentions of women who seek FP services from CPs and PPMVs in Nigeria can predict contraceptive continuation. As Nigeria task shares FP services to CPs and PPMVs, training on comprehensive FP counseling will be essential for scale-up. Since many women continued using FP, CPs and PPMVs have the potential to expand access to, and support women's continued use of, FP.

Contraceptive needs and fertility intentions of women with breast cancer in Cape Town, South Africa: a qualitative study

BackgroundNo known studies have been undertaken in South Africa exploring the contraceptive and fertility needs and preferences of women of reproductive age (18–49) diagnosed with breast cancer. This study set out to understand the contraceptive needs and fertility intentions of women with breast cancer in Cape Town, South Africa.MethodsQualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with 24 women diagnosed with breast cancer and 4 health care providers at a tertiary hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. We explored contraceptive use prior to diagnosis; the impact of breast cancer on future fertility intentions and contraceptive use; understanding of suitable contraceptive methods during and after treatment and women’s fertility related counseling needs during their continuum of care. Data were analysed using a thematic analysis approach.ResultsSince being diagnosed with breast cancer, of those women using a contraceptive method, the non-hormonal intrauterine device (IUD) was the most commonly used method. However, women reported receiving limited information from health care providers about contraceptive use and future fertility planning post treatment when fertility desires might change. Many women reported limited information received from healthcare providers about the impact of cancer treatment on their future fertility. Most women did not receive information around fertility preservation options, and few were familiar with the concept. Providers focus was more on preventing pregnancy during treatment and ensuring a patient was on a non-hormonal contraceptive method. Providers supported a more holistic, multidisciplinary approach to breast cancer patient’s contraceptive and future fertility needs.ConclusionsLimited contraceptive and future fertility counseling were reported by women despite many women being provided with the IUD. There is a need for improved information and counseling regarding the impact of treatment on contraceptive and fertility options. It is important that cancer care providers provide timely information regarding fertility options and communicate with patients about their fertility concerns prior to treatment and throughout the course of survivorship. The development of evidence-based information tools to enhance patient-provider communication and counseling could address knowledge gaps.

The Impact of Paid Parental Leave on Fertility Intentions*

Paid parental leave is an important part of family policy in OECD countries. Australia's Paid Parental Leave scheme was introduced in 2011 and provides 18 weeks of leave paid at the full‐time minimum wage for the primary carer of a child. We estimate the effect of access to paid parental leave on women's fertility intentions by exploiting the differential impact of the scheme for women working in the public and private sectors. We find that the scheme's announcement had no impact on fertility intentions at the extensive margin but that, conditional on intending to have at least one (more) child, the number of children intended increases by 0.34, a 16 per cent increase. This effect is concentrated among highly educated women. As it has been shown that fertility intentions predict fertility outcomes, these results suggest that even modest paid parental leave programs can increase the fertility of working women and so moderate the declines in fertility rates seen in many developed countries.