Factors influencing fertility preference of a developing country during demographic transition: Evidence from Bangladesh

Abstract

Fertility preferences indicate the extent of intended control over reproductive outcomes, and are therefore vital components in the analysis of individual fertility behavior and aggregate fertility trends of a country. Despite extensive research, dissimilarities remain regarding the prior stated fertility preferences and subsequent fertility behavior, especially in case of developing countries like Bangladesh; where third stage of demographic transition begun as a result of continuous assessment. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the differentials of fertility preference as well as the possible timing of the next parity progression of those Bangladeshi couples having positive intentions for more children. BDHS-2007 data is used to estimate a series of discrete time event history models of fertility preference and possible timing for next parity progression considering the dynamic nature of fertility preferences, and controlling for changing reproductive life cycle factors and socioeconomic background predictors of fertility. Findings suggest that though death of last child plays a vital role; there is a complex structure of the decision-making around fertility along with gender preference, abortions, couples educational level, mother's participation in labor force. Although socio-economic classes don't have significant influence on fertility preference, mother's age plays vital role on fertility preference and desired waiting time in Bangladesh. Fertility desires and intentions are innermost in theoretical and empirical approaches to studying childbearing behavior and it is one of the most significant determinants for future population structure of a country. Keywords:1 Evaluating fertility intentions, and determining the extent to which they predict fertility behavior, is also important for population policy and the performance of family planning programs of a country.1 Theoretically, fertility desires and intentions represent different constructs: preferences return goals or ideals, while intentions integrate policy implementation and may be more reactive to personal circumstances and constraints. Extensive evidence from industrialized and developed countries showed that preferences are associated with childbearing behavior, even after accounting for other socio-demographic characteristics; similarities are also observed for middle income countries, too. A large literature exists to explain the mechanism which specifies the relationship between desires and intentions and to predict behavior based on fertility desires and intentions.2-6 There are several cross-national evidence that fertility intentions and preferences predict fertility behavior. The predictive validity of these attitudinal measures has been demonstrated in developed countries. 2In contrast to these studies, demographic surveys rarely collect prospective measures of both intentions and de-

Impact of Proximate Determinants on Fertility Transition Behind the Socio-demographic Factors in Bangladesh: A Hierarchical Approach from the National Survey

“…There was no significant effect of wealth index on women's fertility. 19 This finding is not compatible with those of prior studies. 15,18 Women who dwell in rich families have approximately twice as few children as those living in proletarian households.…”

“…Women dwelling in the western region had comparatively lower fertility rates than those dwelling in the central region. The study performed in Bangladesh 19 reported that fruitfulness is not identical in every region of Bangladesh. Non-Muslim women had a lower fertility rate in Bangladesh than Muslim women.…”

“…In Bangladesh, fertility rates were decreased among women who were significantly involved in mass media. 19 Fertility is also affected by regional diversity. Women residing in the eastern region had high fertility rates at the time of this research in contrast with women dwelling in the central region.…”

Factors associated with unmet fertility desire and perceptions of ideal family size among women in Bangladesh: Insights from a nationwide Demographic and Health Survey

“…For instance, Duvendack and colleagues (2016) showed the association of women empowerment and the trend of fertility among women by years' span [5]. AMF Rabbi (2014) sorted out the fertility preference and concluded that the expected time interval for the next children plays a crucial role in the TFR scenario in Bangladesh [12]. Some other studies generally focused on the relationships of women's decision making autonomy with either the use of contraception or maternal health care services [6,7,10,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22].…”

“…Based on the available literature, it is evident that assessing the determinants of fertility intension and exploring the extent to which they are associated with having more than desired children are crucial for the performance of family planning programs initiatives and for the population policy of a country [12]. Many studies around the world have conceptualized different pathways that affect fertility preference and identified socio-economic and demographic factors of fertility preferences and actual demand for children.…”