Decline in Birth Rate, Fertility Rate, and Average Family Size Flashcards
What Are the Changes?
Birth rate declining since 1900
29 per 1000 (1901), 13 per 1000 (2012)
Baby boom in 2000s - 11.3 in 2002, 13 by 2010
Baby boom in 200s
General fertility and total fertility rate declining - 2.8 1961, under 2 by 2012
Impact of Changes
Average family and household size decreasing - 6 children per family to 1.7 by 2012
Average household size almost halved in 100 years - 4.6 people to 2.4 in 2014
Reasons for Decline
Contraception
More effective safer contraception + cheaper birth control
Social attitudes changing to acceptance
Growing secularisation, declining influence of church + religion on behaviour
Legal and safe abortion makes family planning easier
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Reasons for Decline
Compulsory Education
Children barred from employment in 1880, ceased to be economic asset
Now an economic burden, drain on resources - have to be supported in education, often post 17/18 and into 20s
Reasons for Decline
Rising Costs of Having Children
Opinion Matters - family size declining due to cost of raising children. Couples with one child - 16% in 1972, 20% 2014, 58% said it was due to money
£270,000 from birth to 21
Hirsch - estimated £154,000 up to 18
Limit family size to ensure higher quality of life
Reasons for Decline
Changing Position of Women
Impact of feminism
Sharpe - Priorities changed from ‘love, marriage etc’ to ‘job, career etc’
McRobbie - Once-common aspiration of motherhood replaced by desire for degree + career
Women combine with employment, so have fewer children, and later - average age 29.8 in 2012, 2 years older than 2000
20% born 1967 childless at 45, 11% of those born 1940
Reasons for Decline
Declining Infant Mortality Rate
Until 1940s absence of welfare state meant parents relied on children for old age care
Uncertain if they would outlive parents, so had many children to safeguard
Declining infant mortality, so fewer people die before adulthood,
No longer insurance children + there are agencies for old age care
Reasons for Decline
Geographically Moblie Labour Force
Contemporary societies require geographically mobile labour force - may encourage smaller family sizes for ease of movement
Functionalist view, may be outdated (virtual work)
Reasons for Decline
Changing Values
Parenthood means greater pressure on couples, lifelong committment, loss of freedom + independence, sacrifices (cuts to leisure time/spending)
Growing individualism, femininsm, women want to move beyond motherhood
Postmodernists - people establish identity through leisure + spending, choose not to have children
