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In the most modern parts of the modern world, three aspects of fertility do seem historically unprecedented and clearly important. First, there is no stigma attached to being childless; a woman's worth, in this life or the next, is not judged adversely if she chooses never to have children. Second, children are no longer economic assets, as they generally were in rural and early industrial societies; rather, they are economic burdens, voracious consumers who produce virtually nothing until their late teens or early twenties. Third, fertility control is now both uneventful and virtually absolute. Those who want to avoid having children can easily do so--without restraining their natural sex drive, without putting themselves at physical risk, and without resorting to infanticide or abortion. Children are thus culturally optional, economically burdensome, and technologically avoidable. Still, having the option to avoid children is not a reason to avoid them, and for many, clearly, the economic burdens seem bearable enough. So the question remains: why do so many men and women in the most affluent societies in history seem to want so few offspring?
Why Have Children? By Eric Cohen
Historical Living Arrangements for Children,
1960-2000
0.00
10.00
20.00
30.00
40.00
50.00
60.00
70.00
80.00
90.00
100.00
2000 1990 1980 1970 1960
Both Parents
Mother only
Father only
Household Arrangements for Children, March 2002
0
2,000
4,000
6,000
8,000
10,000
Under1 year
1-2years
3-5years
6-8years
9-11years
12-14years
15-17years
..Living w ith both parents
..Living w ith mother only
..Living w ith father only
..Living w ith neither parent
Fertility in America
Number of ChildrenFecundity v FertilityMenarche to MenopauseFrom Rural-agricultural to urban/industrial societyTechnological changesChanging roles of women in society
Crude Birth Rate: Annual # of Births Divided by Population in Thousands
Total Fertility Rate: # of children 1000 women will bear during the whole of their lifetime
Birth Rate Per 1000 Women in America, 1790-1990
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
1790 1800 1810 1820 1830 1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990
Trends in Birthrates according to NCHS
• Teenage births continue to decline in number.
• Decrease in women in their early twenties bearing children.
• Births to older women continue to increase.
• Total fertility rate rose slightly.• First birth rates for women 35-44
showed sizeable increases.
Family Planning?
• Methods of Contraception– Sterilization (male or female)– Pill– IUD– Diaphragm– Condom– Periodic Abstinence– Abstinence
Transition to Parenthood: “No such thing. There is no transition. It’s sink or swim!!”
• Mother• 18 and 19th
Century: Educator, Nurturer
• 19 to 20th Century: Icon, Nurturer
• 20 to 21st Century: Breadwinner, Nurturer
• Father• 18 and 19th
Century: Moral Overseer
• 19 to 20th Century: Distant Breadwinner
• 20 to 21st Century: Sex Role Model
1959 v 1983Role Participation
Source: Victor R. Fuchs, “Sex Differences in Economic Well-Being.”
• In 1959 Male Labor Force Participation was 76.62%. In 1983 it decreased to 64.21%.
• Male Homework participation in 1959 was 27.58%. In 1983 it rose to 30.91%.
• Male Childcare participation in 1959 was 22.22%. It rose slightly to 22.69% in 1983.
• In 1959 Female Labor Force Participation was 23.38%. In 1983 it decreased to 35.79%.
• Female Homework participation in 1959 was 72.42%. In 1983 it rose to 69.09%.
• Female Childcare participation in 1959 was 77.78%. It rose slightly to 77.31% in 1983.
Source: “Is Anyone Doing the Housework? Trends in the Gender Division of Household
Labor.” Authors:Bianchi, Suzanne M., Milkie, Melisa A., Sayer, Liana C., Robinson, John
