Epidemics and Fertility Change: Responses to Zika and COVID-19 in Singapore

Childbearing decisions and related factors in the COVID-19 pandemic: A narrative review study

“…[ 3 10 11 23 24 ] The reconsideration of the couples' fertility plans in the pandemic was in the form of confirmation or cancellation of previous plans, less childbearing preference and delaying or setting forward the childbearing plan. The results of studies confirm the greater tendency to delay childbearing[ 11 24 28 29 30 32 ] and the cancellation of previously set fertility plans[ 3 10 11 26 ] [ Table 1 ]. A study by Kahn et al .…”

“…As shown by the results of the studies reviewed, the COVID-19 crisis affected the childbearing process, leading to a more negative fertility response compared to previous health crises. [ 29 ] Although these changes differed in societies with different economic and social conditions, the greater tendency to delay childbearing was confirmed on the whole. According to the experience of the previous health crises, anxiety and insecurity resulting from the crisis would lead to behavioral changes and avoidance of pregnancy.…”

Childcare burden and changes in fertility desires of mothers during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Although there were some differences between countries due to their economic and social conditions (Luppi et al, 2020), the overall tendency to delay childbearing was evident in all countries under study. Most of the previous studies examined changes in fertility intentions during the COVID-19 pandemic (Luppi et al, 2020;Zhu et al, 2020;Arpino et al, 2021;Flynn et al, 2021;Kahn et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2021;Malicka et al, 2021;Marteleto and Dondero, 2021;Sienicka et al, 2021;Tan et al, 2021;Buber-Ennser et al, 2023), and only a few studies investigated changes in fertility desires (Lindberg et al, 2021;Lazzari et al, 2023). Fertility desires represent individuals' explicit wishes regarding childbearing (i.e., the preferred number of children and timing for childbearing), whereas fertility intentions are defined as more concrete plans for childbearing considering current circumstances and obstacles (Miller, 2011;Philipov and Bernardi, 2012).…”

“…Fertility preferences (i.e., an umbrella term for fertility desires, intentions, expectations, and plans) also changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic: most people delayed or abandoned their fertility plans during the pandemic, as shown by a recent review (Safdari Dehcheshmeh et al, 2023). Among the factors related to changes in fertility preferences during the COVID-19 pandemic, previous studies highlighted economic conditions (e.g., job insecurity, unemployment, decreased income, or fear of income decline) (Lindberg et al, 2020;Micelli et al, 2020;Arpino et al, 2021;Kahn et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2021;Malicka et al, 2021;Sienicka et al, 2021;Tan et al, 2021), access to healthcare services (Flynn et al, 2021;Sienicka et al, 2021), health concerns (e.g., worries about the effect of the virus on pregnant women and unborn children) (Micelli et al, 2020;Flynn et al, 2021), and increased psychological distress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. (Kahn et al, 2021;Malicka et al, 2021;Marteleto and Dondero, 2021;Naya et al, 2021;Tan et al, 2021).…”

“…Among the factors related to changes in fertility preferences during the COVID-19 pandemic, previous studies highlighted economic conditions (e.g., job insecurity, unemployment, decreased income, or fear of income decline) (Lindberg et al, 2020;Micelli et al, 2020;Arpino et al, 2021;Kahn et al, 2021;Lin et al, 2021;Malicka et al, 2021;Sienicka et al, 2021;Tan et al, 2021), access to healthcare services (Flynn et al, 2021;Sienicka et al, 2021), health concerns (e.g., worries about the effect of the virus on pregnant women and unborn children) (Micelli et al, 2020;Flynn et al, 2021), and increased psychological distress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. (Kahn et al, 2021;Malicka et al, 2021;Marteleto and Dondero, 2021;Naya et al, 2021;Tan et al, 2021). Increased childcare burden on parents during lockdowns was also suggested to result in lower fertility desires (Aassve et al, 2020), but research on this is scarce.…”