How Modernization Can Also Increase Fertility [and Comments and Reply]

Nag, Moni; Abernethy, Virginia; Bauwens, Eleanor E.; Browner, Carole H.; Lesthaeghe, Ronny; Raphael, Dana; Romaniuc, Anatole; Stucki, Larry R.; Walle, Etienne van de

doi:10.1086/202538

Cited by 50 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 33 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…But other studies suggest that rural-urban migration in sub-Saharan Africa does not always produce significant declines in fertility (Kollehlon 1986;Hollos & Larsen 1992;Lee 1992). Further, some scholars have argued that in certain cases fertility may actually increase with urban migration (Nag 1979;Diop 1985;Cleveland 1991). Whatever the merits of the individual studies, they raise important theoretical issues about the relationship between migration and fertility.…”

Section: Rural-urban Migration and Fertilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Urbanization and the fertility transition in Ghana

White

Tagoe

Stiff

et al. 2005

Popul Res Policy Rev

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper examines the way in which migration and urban residence operate to alter fertility outcomes. While urban-rural fertility differentials have long been established for most developing societies, the nature of these differences among migrants and between migrants and those of succeeding generations is not well understood. The evidence presented here suggests that rural-urban migration and urbanization may contribute positively to processes of fertility transition. Using data from the 1998 Kumasi Peri-Urban Survey, which included a 5-year retrospective monthly calendar of childbearing, we suggest that migrants adapt quickly to an urban environment. Our results also reveal generational differences in recent and cumulative fertility. While migrants exhibit higher cumulative fertility than urban residents of the second and third generation, their fertility is significantly lower than rural averages in Ghana. Children of migrants exhibit childbearing patterns quite similar to those in higher-order generations. Most noteworthy is the nature of the disparities in childbearing patterns between migrants and the succeeding generations. Migrant women have higher lifetime fertility than urban natives. Migrant women also exhibit higher fertility over the last 5 years than second generation or high-order urban natives. But these first generation women exhibit lower fertility (vs. urban natives) for the year immediately prior to the survey. These patterns lend support to an interpretation that combines rather than opposes theories of selectivity, disruption, adaptation and socialization. We conclude by discussing mechanisms that might explain these interrelated processes of fertility adjustment and suggest that policies discouraging rural-urban migration need to be revisited.

show abstract

Section: Rural-urban Migration and Fertilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Urbanization and the fertility transition in Ghana

White

Tagoe

Stiff

et al. 2005

Popul Res Policy Rev

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…As we saw earlier, the increases in fertility are attributable to declines in the duration of postpartum amenorrhea, postpartum abstinence, and widowhood.3s. 36 Another contributing factor may be a decrease in pathological infertility in the 1950s and 196Os, due to antibiotic control of the prevalence of sterility-inducing sexually transmitted diseases.33* 35, 37 Similarly, type I1 transitions in which increases in the prevalence of contraceptive practice are initially offset by other proximate determinants are probably in progress in Botswana and Zimbabwe. These countries have experienced substantial increases in the prevalence of contraceptive practice without much change in fertility before 1985, although fertility has declined recently, particularly in Botswana.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioural and biological determinants of fertility transition in sub‐saharan Africa

Frank

Bongaarts

1991

Statistics in Medicine

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In the transition from high to low fertility, different biological and behavioural proximate determinants play roles of varying importance in mediating the change. In most regions of the world, the practice of contraception has come to play the major role, so much so that there is a close relationship worldwide between the level of practice of contraception and the level of fertility. In sub-Saharan Africa, the prevalence of contraceptive practice is low, and fertility levels are exceptionally high for recorded levels of contraceptive practice, even where levels of contraceptive practice are comparable to other regions. The discrepancies are explained to a very large extent by differences between Africa and other regions in other proximate determinants--notably exposure to the risk of pregnancy, and abstinence after delivery. It would seem that transition in African countries will follow one of two patterns that are different to the pattern of transition observed in all other regions. First, fertility may rise before it declines, due to abandonment of traditional fertility regulation for some time prior to the eventual adoption of contraceptive practice. Second, the prevalence of contraceptive practice may rise for a time before there is an observable decline in fertility, because at the same time that contraception is adopted, traditional regulation of fertility is being abandoned, offsetting any effect on fertility. Kenya is an example of the first pattern, while Botswana, Ghana, and Zimbabwe are probably examples of the second.

show abstract

“…How can this pre-decline fertility rise be understood? Rising fertility trends before the onset of fertility decline at times of social and economic development have been documented for both developed and developing countries (Nag 1980;Romaniuk 1980Romaniuk , 1981Dyson and Murphy 1985;Saito 2006;Garenne 2008;Ortega 2009;Reher and Requena 2014). Social and economic development can influence fertility-related factors in two opposing directions.…”

Section: Toward An Explanation Of Rising Fertility Before the Continumentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A change in marriage patterns, birth intervals (breastfeeding and postpartum abstinence), and disease-related fertility can explain the rising trend in fertility during the 'opening phase' of the fertility transition (Nag 1980;Dyson and Murphy 1985).…”

Section: Toward An Explanation Of Rising Fertility Before the Continumentioning

confidence: 99%

Reconstructing historical fertility change in Mongolia

Spoorenberg¹

2015

DemRes

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

How Modernization Can Also Increase Fertility [and Comments and Reply]

Cited by 50 publications

References 33 publications

Urbanization and the fertility transition in Ghana

Urbanization and the fertility transition in Ghana

Behavioural and biological determinants of fertility transition in sub‐saharan Africa

Reconstructing historical fertility change in Mongolia

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About