Between a rock and a hard place: The reasons why women delay childbearing

Abstract

The increasing trend for women to delay childbearing is often met with harsh criticism and judgment, based on the assumption that women are prioritizing their careers over having children. An on-line survey of 500 currently childless Canadian women between the ages of 18 and 38 (M = 28) assessed participants' childbearing intentions and beliefs, and the factors they felt were most important in the timing of childbearing. Although the respondents felt women should ideally have their first child in their late 20s, most expected that they would begin their families in their 30s. The ability to financially support a child was the most strongly endorsed factor in the timing of childbearing, followed by good health, being with a partner who would be an involved and loving parent, and having a proper home in which to raise a child. These findings highlight the values and beliefs that were most salient in participants' decisions about the timing of childbearing.

What Took You So Long? A Public Health Approach to Mitigate the Delayed Childbearing

“…Even their own health and other burdens seem to matter less. These findings are similar to the trends observed all over the world (Hammarberg and Clarke, 2005;Craig et al, 2014;Schytt et al, 2014;Birch Petersen et al, 2015;Kearney and White, 2016;Daniluk and Koert, 2017). We are the first survey from Asia where 60% of global population resided and this may reflect the gender inequality in reproduction in this region (Mehrotra and Kapoor, 2009).…”

Conceptualising women's motivations for social egg freezing and experience of reproductive delay

“…); the desire to establish financial security prior to parenthood (Cooke et al . ; Daniluk and Koert ); the decline in the job for life model and growth in precarious careers (Daly and Bewley , Waldby ); and the cost of childcare (Berrington ). Similar structural factors also recognised in the literature include the greater presence and activity of women in the labour market (Penfold and Foxton ); a change in gender roles brought about by the increased reliability of methods of contraception (Tough et al .…”

“…); and longer periods of time spent in education (Clarke and Hammarberg ). Whilst these physical, economic and structural factors are increasingly well recognised in academic literature as shaping the timing of motherhood, other relational factors are comparatively overlooked but include: the lack of a suitable partner who is equally committed to parenting (Berrington ; Daniluk and Koert ); the perceived lack of procreative desire among men especially in urban settings (Waldby ); the increase in cohabitating (Mills et al . ); increase in relationship breakdown and the normalisation of multiple partnerships prior to marriage (Beaujouan and Bhrolcháin ).…”

The Risks of Advancing Parental Age on Neonatal Morbidity and Mortality are U- or J-Shaped for Both Maternal and Paternal Ages.

“…The disease burden attributable to chromosomal nondisjunction including Down syndrome is quite large (9). However, the role of maternal age in causing neonatal morbidity and mortality (NMM) in the absence of maternal aneuploidy is controversial (11).…”