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Fertility
Kinds of Fertility Terms modified by Fertility Selected AbstractsPERSONAL TAX EXEMPTION: THE EFFECT ON FERTILITY IN TAIWANTHE DEVELOPING ECONOMIES, Issue 1 2002Jr-Tsung HUANG First page of article [source] Indigenous Population, Fertility, and Reproductive Intention in the Lowland Neotropics: Response to McSweeneyCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2006ROBERT ENGELMAN No abstract is available for this article. [source] Fertility among female hodgkin lymphoma survivors attempting pregnancy following ABVD chemotherapyHEMATOLOGICAL ONCOLOGY, Issue 1 2007David C. Hodgson Abstract Although ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, dacarbazine) chemotherapy is infrequently associated with premature amenorrhea, little is known about the success rate of women attempting pregnancy following ABVD. In the present study females treated for HL with ABVD chemotherapy without pelvic radiation therapy (RT) and who were alive without relapse ,3 years after treatment were identified from a clinical database and screened for inclusion. Using a standardized questionnaire, we determined the pregnancy rate (i.e. time-to-pregnancy, TTP) among survivors who had become pregnant, tried to become pregnant, or who had been sexually active for over 2 months without using contraception at any time following ABVD. The cumulative incidence of pregnancy was calculated using the Kaplan,Meier method. Cox proportional hazards models were constructed to compare the pregnancy rate among HL survivors to that reported by friend or sibling controls. Thirty-six female HL survivors, who had attempted pregnancy after ABVD treatment, and 29 controls, completed the survey. Eighteen patients (50%) received 2,4 cycles of ABVD, 16 (44%) received 4,6 cycles, and 2 (6%) received >6 cycles. The median TTP among both HL survivors and controls was 2.0 months. The 12-month pregnancy rates were 70% and 75%, respectively. The fertility ratio (FR) for HL survivors versus controls was 0.94 (95%CI,=,0.53,1.66; p,=,0.84) after adjusting for age and frequency of intercourse (where FR <,1 indicates subfertility). Age at treatment and the number of cycles of chemotherapy were not associated with pregnancy rate among HL survivors. Female HL patients who had survived without recurrence ,3 years and who had attempted pregnancy after ABVD did not experience significant sub-fertility. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Fertility needs and funding in couples with blood-borne viral infectionHIV MEDICINE, Issue 1 2010E Kalu Background Couples infected with HIV, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are increasingly seeking assisted conception. These couples avoid unprotected intercourse and use condoms at all times in order to minimize the risk of infecting their partner. As this practice inhibits pregnancy, assisted procreation is generally required for safe conception. For many couples, access to such services is restricted on ethical, geographical and financial grounds. Objective The aim of the study was to assess the fertility needs, geographical origin and state funding of patients with blood-borne viral infection. Methods A retrospective review of the medical records of couples referred for fertility treatment between January 1999 and December 2006, where one or both partners were infected with HIV, HBV and/or HCV, was carried out. Results Of the 205 couples included in the study, 44% lived in London, 51% came from elsewhere in the United Kingdom and 5% travelled from outside the United Kingdom to seek treatment. Genitourinary medicine clinics were the main source of referral. 85.8% of couples had HIV infection, 15.1% were infected with HBV and 13.6% had HCV infection. Fertility screening identified a high incidence of male factor infertility (33.3%) in HIV-infected men and tubal disease (40.8%) in HIV-infected women. Only 23.6% of HIV-infected couples, 20% of HBV-infected couples and 12.5% of HCV-infected couples obtained state funding for assisted conception. Conclusion Fertility screening identified a high incidence of male and tubal factor subfertility among couples living with HIV, HBV and HCV. Limited access to specialist clinics equipped to cater for these couples and restricted funding may impact negatively on couples obtaining risk-reducing assisted reproduction treatment. This may have long-term public health implications as individuals attempt to conceive through unprotected intercourse. [source] More on Marriage, Fertility, and the Distribution of Income*INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 3 2003Jeremy Greenwood According to Pareto (1896), the distribution of income depends on "the nature of the people comprising a society, on the organization of the latter, and, also, in part, on chance." In the model developed here the "nature of the people" is captured by attitudes toward marriage, divorce, fertility, and children. Singles search for mates in a marriage market. Married agents bargain about work, and the quantity and quality of children. They can divorce. Social policies, such as child support requirements, reflect the "organization of the (society)." Finally, "chance" is modeled by randomness in income, marriage opportunities, and marital bliss. [source] Proceedings of the 3rd Copenhagen Workshop on Environment, Reproductive Health and Fertility, 15,18 January 2005INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ANDROLOGY, Issue 1 2006Niels Jørgensen No abstract is available for this article. [source] Fertility and history of sexual abuse at 10-year follow-up of adolescent-onset anorexia nervosaINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EATING DISORDERS, Issue 4 2005Elisabet Wentz MD Abstract Objective We studied fertility and history of child sexual abuse (CSA) in a representative group of anorexia nervosa (AN) cases. Method Fifty-one adolescent-onset AN cases recruited after community screening and 51 matched comparison cases were interviewed 10 years after reported AN onset, at mean age 24 years, regarding children, miscarriages, and fertility problems. They completed anonymously the Finkelhor self-report questionnaire regarding history of CSA. Results There were few fertility problems in our AN population. There was a tendency towards more subjects in the AN group to give birth to a child (10 AN and 4 comparison mothers). The prevalence of CSA was equal between groups. For example, 6% in each group had experienced CSA before the age of 10 years, and 14% of the AN and 12% of the comparison cases reported CSA. Discussion Infertility and history of CSA may not be overrepresented in a population-based AN sample at long-term follow-up. © 2005 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Family Changes in the Context of Lowest-Low Fertility: The Case of JapanINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF JAPANESE SOCIOLOGY, Issue 1 2008Makoto Atoh Abstract: Japan has currently one of the lowest-low fertility rates in the world. Low fertility in Japan is due to the extreme postponement of marriage and childbearing, and their weak recuperation in women in their 30s, as well as very low levels of cohabitation and extra-marital fertility. Both changing and unchanged aspects of families are related to lowest-low fertility in Japan. Although premarital sexual activities have increased, women's contraceptive initiative is very weak: they may be connected with weak partnership formation. "Parasite singles", "freeters", or "NEETs", probably related to weak family formation, have increased, but they may be connected with strong filial bondage derived from the traditional family system, i.e. Women have been normatively, educationally, and occupationally emancipated, but gender norms are currently divided in half among Japanese people, which may deter the revising of working conditions for women with children, leading to delaying family formation among working women. Lowest-low fertility conversely brings about family changes. Its direct effect is the increase of lifetime celibacy and childless couples, which may jeopardize the universality of families. Its indirect effect is through policy response to low fertility as well as labor shortages and population aging: recently, both family and labor policies have been strengthened to make it easier for working women to continue their jobs after marriage and childbirth, which might in turn promote family formation in Japan. [source] Water Deficit Reduced Fertility of Young Microspores Resulting in a Decline of Viable Mature Pollen and Grain Set in RiceJOURNAL OF AGRONOMY AND CROP SCIENCE, Issue 1 2009G. N. Nguyen Abstract Pollen formation in rice (Oryza sativa L.) is highly vulnerable to environmental stresses such as heat, chilling and drought. In rice plants exposed to drought during male reproductive development, the most obvious damage often observed is a decline in the number of engorged pollen and grain set. This has been well characterized in rice under chilling and to a lesser extent under drought stress. Moreover, detailed literature on the immediate effects of drought on developing young microspores in rice is still limited. Here, we report findings from experiments on rice plants exposed to water deficit for three consecutive days during early stages of anther development. When the osmotic potential of the growing medium was equal to or less than ,0.5 MPa, as induced by polyethylene glycol, the leaf water potential was significantly lowered and grain set was reduced. A strong correlation between grain set and viable young microspores (P < 0.001, r2 = 0.8223) indicates that water deficit immediately reduced fertility of rice plants at the time of exposure. This result suggests a new underlying mechanism of water deficit-induced pollen abortion in rice. [source] Intercropping for the Improvement of Sorghum Yield, Soil Fertility and Striga Control in the Subsistence Agriculture Region of Tigray (Northern Ethiopia)JOURNAL OF AGRONOMY AND CROP SCIENCE, Issue 1 2005F. Reda Abstract Striga hermonthica is a major biotic constraint in the dry and less fertile areas of northern Ethiopia. Emphasis is being placed on improved cropping systems to address the interrelated problems of Striga and soil fertility decline. The potential benefits of intercropping were investigated at two sites representing different environments for crop yield improvement, soil fertility maintenance and Striga control. Ten food legume and oilseed crop species were compared in inter-row arrangement with sorghum under non-fertilized conditions. In most cases, there was no significant negative impact of intercropping on sorghum growth and development. Among the intercrops, two cowpea varieties , cv. TVU 1977 OD and cv. Blackeye bean , produced the highest supplemental yield of up to 329 and 623 kg ha,1 grain and 608 and 1173 kg ha,1 biomass at Adibakel and Sheraro respectively. Treatment differences on Striga infestation and measured soil fertility indicators were not significant. Nevertheless, valuable grain and biomass obtained from the legume intercrops, without seriously compromising sorghum yield, could offer multiple benefits as a source of protein, additional income, feeds for animals and manure in the subsistence agriculture regions of northern Ethiopia. [source] Critical Perspectives on Schooling and Fertility in the Developing World, by Caroline Bledsoe,John Casterline, Jennifer Johnson-Kuhn and John Haaga (eds).JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, Issue 8 2000National Academy Press, Washington DC, pp.x + 320.Reviewed by Abbi Mamo Kedir. No abstract is available for this article. [source] Factors Associated With Multiple-Partner Fertility Among FathersJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 2 2008Jennifer Manlove This article uses a sample of 1,731 fathers aged 16 , 45 from the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth to identify factors associated with multiple-partner fertility. Almost one third of fathers who reported multiple-partner fertility did so across a series of nonmarital relationships, and nonmarital-only multiple-partner fertility has been increasing across recent cohorts of men. Being older, having a first sexual experience or a first child at a young age, and fathering a child outside of marriage or cohabitation are associated with greater odds of multiple-partner fertility, whereas having additional children with the first birth mother is associated with reduced odds. Black, Hispanic, and young fathers have especially high odds of experiencing multiple-partner fertility across a series of nonmarital relationships. [source] More Kin, Less Support: Multipartnered Fertility and Perceived Support Among MothersJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 1 2007Kristen Harknett Recent research has documented the high prevalence of having children with more than 1 partner, termed multipartnered fertility. Because childbearing is an important mechanism for building kin networks, we theorize that multipartnered fertility will influence the availability of social support for mothers. Analyzing 3 waves of data from the Fragile Families study (N = 12,259), we find that multipartnered fertility is negatively associated with the availability of financial, housing, and child-care support. Our longitudinal evidence suggests a bidirectional relationship in which multipartnered fertility reduces the availability of support, and the availability of support inhibits multipartnered fertility. We conclude that smaller and denser kin networks seem to be superior to broader, but weaker kin ties in terms of perceived instrumental support. [source] Nonmarital Fertility and the Effects of Divorce Rates on Youth Suicide RatesJOURNAL OF MARRIAGE AND FAMILY, Issue 4 2006Steven F. Messner Using pooled, time-series data for a sample of 15 developed nations, we assess the effect of divorce rates on gender-specific suicide rates for youths aged 15 , 19 with models of relative cohort size, lagged nonmarital fertility, and an interaction term for divorce rates and nonmarital fertility. The results reveal that, for young men, relative cohort size is positively related to suicide rates, and divorce rates interact with lagged nonmarital fertility. The interaction effect indicates that increases in divorces are especially consequential for suicide cohorts of male youths who were born in periods of high nonmarital fertility. For female youths, only divorce rates exert a significant effect on suicide rates, and it is a positive, main effect. [source] Backward Intergenerational Goods and Endogenous FertilityJOURNAL OF PUBLIC ECONOMIC THEORY, Issue 5 2008JOHN WILLIAM HATFIELD This paper characterizes the consequences of introducing the public provision of intergenerational goods to the elderly in a model with endogenous fertility. With exogenous fertility, it has been shown that the government can mandate the first-best outcome by simply imposing the socially optimal transfer. By contrast, with endogenous fertility, the government can no longer enforce this outcome. This is due, in part, to the effects of mandatory provision on the birth rate. However, taxes may still have a salubrious effect on social welfare as they can eliminate particularly bad equilibria. [source] Validation of plant functional types across two contrasting landscapesJOURNAL OF VEGETATION SCIENCE, Issue 2 2002Michael Kleyer Disturbance; Fertility; Logistic regression; Trait; Urban landscape Abstract. The validation of plant functional type models across contrasting landscapes is seen as a step towards the claim that plant functional types should recur regionally or even globally. I sampled the vegetation of an urban landscape on a range of sites representing gradients of resource supply and disturbance intensity. A group of plants with similar attributes was considered a ,functional type', if the species significantly co-occurred in a certain segment of the gradient plane of resource supply and disturbance intensity. Vegetative and regeneration traits were considered. A similar study was performed in a nearby agricultural landscape (Kleyer 1999). The logistic regression models from the urban landscape were applied to the data set of the agricultural landscape and vice versa. Although the overall environment of the two landscapes was very different, recurrent patterns of several functional types were found. At high fertility and high disturbance levels, annual species predominated with a persistent seed bank, high seed output, and short vertical expansion. When disturbances changed from below-ground to above-ground, the sexual regeneration mode was replaced by the vegetative mode, while vertical expansion remained low. At medium disturbance intensities, the vertical expansion and vegetative regeneration increased with fertility, while the seed bank remained mostly transient to short-term persistent and lateral expansion and sexual regeneration was intermediate. At low disturbances and low resource supplies, seed bank longevity, and vertical and lateral expansion tended to be long. Diversity of groups of plants with similar attributes was highest at intermediate disturbance levels and low fertility. These results correspond with Grime's humped-back model and Connell's intermediate disturbance hypothesis. [source] Fertility and Employment in Italy, France, and the UKLABOUR, Issue 2005Daniela Del Boca According to the agenda for employment set by the European Union in 2000 for the following 10 years, the target for female employment was set at 60 per cent for the year 2010. Although Northern and most Continental countries have achieved this quantitative target, the Mediterranean countries are lagging behind. Labor market policies should be aimed to encourage women's participation and reduce the cost of working. However, the persistence of a negative relationship between participation and fertility in these countries implies that it is important to take fertility into account. We analyse a model of labor supply and fertility, using data from the European Community Household Panel (ECHP) for the period 1994,2000, merged with regional data describing the available labor market opportunities in the households' environment. [source] Intergenerational Transfers, and Public Pensions in a Non Altuistic Setting: a Public Choice ModelLABOUR, Issue 1 2001Furio Camillo Rosati The paper presents a model based on non-altruistic individuals, where middle aged and old individuals influence the decisions about public social security system. This is an alternative or a complement to private intergenerational transfers. Fertility is endogenous, as children are seen as an assets in the process of transferring resources to old age by the network of intergenerational intrafamily transfers. Expectations about the Government social security budget balance play a crucial role. We also present some empirical estimates of the fertility and pension ,demand' function for some developed countries. It emerges that both can be treated as endogenous, and the results are coherent with the theory. [source] Nutrient losses from rain-fed bench terraced cultivation systems in high rainfall areas of the mid-hills of NepalLAND DEGRADATION AND DEVELOPMENT, Issue 5 2007G. P. Acharya Abstract Between the elevations of 1000 and 2000,m in the mid-hills of Nepal, over 12 million people subsist on land-holdings of less than 0·5,ha. These farmers have limited access to commercial inputs such as fertilisers and are reliant on organic manures for soil fertility maintenance. Participatory research was conducted with farmers on bari land (upper slope rain-fed crop terraces) in the hill community of Landruk (bench terraces 0,5° slope, 3000,3500,mm annual rainfall, which aimed to develop soil and water management interventions that controlled erosion without resulting in high leaching, and so were effective in minimising total nutrient losses. Interventions tested were the control of water movement through diversion of run-on and planting fodder grasses on terrace risers on bench terraces. The interventions were effective in reducing soil loss from the bari land in comparison with existing farmer practices, but no effect was observed on nutrient losses in solution form through runoff and leaching. Losses of NO3 -N in leachate ranged from 17·3 to 99·7,kg,ha,1,yr,1, but only 0·7 to 5·6,kg,ha,1,yr,1 in runoff. The overall nutrient balance suggests that the system is not sustainable. Fertility is heavily dependent on livestock inputs and if the current trends of declining livestock numbers due to labour constraints continue, further losses in productivity can be expected. However, farmers are interested in interventions that tie ecosystem services with productivity enhancement and farmers' priorities should be used as entry points for promoting interventions that are system compatible and harness niche opportunities. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] On the Politics and Practice of Muslim FertilityMEDICAL ANTHROPOLOGY QUARTERLY, Issue 1 2006Jennifer Johnson-Hanks Recent popular works have represented Muslim fertility as dangerously high, both a cause and consequence of religious fundamentalism. This article uses comparative, statistical methods to show that this representation is empirically wrong, at least in West Africa. Although religion strongly inflects reproductive practice, its effects are not constant across different communities. In West African countries with Muslim majorities, Muslim fertility is lower than that of their non-Muslim conationals; in countries where Muslims are in the minority, their apparently higher reproductive rates converge to those of the majority when levels of education and urban residence are taken into account. A similar pattern holds for infant mortality. By contrast, in all seven countries, Muslim women are more likely to report that their most recent child was wanted. The article concludes with a discussion of the relationship between autonomy and fertility desires. [source] Embodying Honor: Fertility, Foreignness, and Regeneration in Eastern Sudan by Amal FadlallaAMERICAN ETHNOLOGIST, Issue 3 2010SONDRA HALE No abstract is available for this article. [source] Fertility and Economic Growth: Do Immigrant Maids Play a Role?PACIFIC ECONOMIC REVIEW, Issue 2 2002Sucharita Ghosh A significant source of child-care services in East and South-East Asia are provided by immigrant maids. Using a modified version of the model used in Galor and Weil (1996), the present paper analyses the impact of this source of child-care services on women's labor market participation, fertility behavior and the household purchase of child-care services. The results show that a lower price for the maid service leads to a lower savings rate, a higher demand for children and less time being spent with children. We also find that hiring immigrant maids leads to lower economic growth in the long run. [source] Gamma radiation sensitivity of the eggs, larvae and pupae of Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE (FORMERLY: PESTICIDE SCIENCE), Issue 5 2008Abdurrahman Ayvaz Abstract BACKGROUND: This study focused on determining the minimal effective gamma radiation dose that prevents commodity damage caused by the Indian meal moth Plodia interpunctella (Hübner). The study was also designed to assess the effect of releasing either partially sterilized males alone or both partially sterilized males and females on the reproductive potential of P. interpunctella populations. RESULTS: The dose of radiation required to prevent larval emergence from irradiated eggs was 350 Gy, and the same dose was also required to prevent adult emergence from mature larvae. A dose of 300 Gy was not able to prevent adult emergence from irradiated pupae. The dose at which 100% sterility was achieved in treated females mated to treated males was 300 Gy for the parental generation of irradiated pupae. Fertility of the parental males from irradiated pupae was 48.17% at 300 Gy in treated males crossed with untreated females, but male progeny of irradiated male parents had a residual fertility of 11.06% at the same dose. CONCLUSION: F1 males from irradiated pupae were more sterile than parental males. To prevent larval emergence from irradiated eggs, a dose of 350 Gy is required. The same dose is required to prevent the larvae from reaching the adult stage. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Isovitexin-2,- O -,-[6- O -E- p -coumaroylglucopyranoside] from UV-B irradiated Leaves of Rice, Oryza sativa L. Inhibits Fertility of Helicoverpa armigeraPHOTOCHEMISTRY & PHOTOBIOLOGY, Issue 5 2007Merdelyn T. Caasi-Lit UV-B irradiated rice leaves (Oryza sativa L.) contained four closely related flavonoids, with either an isoorientin or isovitexin aglycone. These flavonoids have previously been purified and characterized, and were added to artificial diets of the African bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera Hübner) at 0.1× concentration found in irradiated rice leaves. Consumption of different diets had relatively small effects on laval, pupal and adult duration, weight and survival, indicating the insects lived near normal life cycles on all diets. However, one of the compounds, flavonoid IIa, isovitexin-2,- O -,-[6- O -E- p -coumaroylglucopyranoside], dramatically reduced the number of fertile eggs laid to 7% of control insects (P < 0.001) when added to insect diets at 18 nmol gFW,1 (14 ppm). A similar antifertility effect was observed when only the male partner consumed diet containing flavonoid IIa, indicating that the reduced fertility may be male specific. In contrast, the fecundity and fertility of insects eating diets containing the closely related flavonoids, isoorientin-2,- O -,-[6- O -E- p -coumaroylglucopyranoside] or isoorientin-2,- O -,-[6- O -E- p -feruloylglucopyranoside], were not significantly different to control diets. [source] Fertility, body size, and shape: An empirical test of the covert maternal depletion hypothesis,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Ilona Nenko In populations with limited resources, high-reproductive effort may lead to poor nutritional status of the mother (the maternal depletion syndrome), whereas in well-nourished populations woman's body weight tends to increase after each pregnancy. However, in affluent populations, women's body shape may change due to mobilization of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) from the lower parts of their bodies to meet the needs of the developing child (the "covert maternal depletion"). We studied relationships between reproductive history traits and body size and shape for 296 rural, parous women in good nutritional status (mean body mass index, BMI = 27.9, SD = 5.94), aged 22,85 (mean 47.8, SD = 16.34) from southern Poland. Body mass adjusted for age, age of menarche, body height, and similarly adjusted BMI were each positively related to the number of children born by a woman (R = 0.13, P = 0.02 and R = 0.13, P = 0.02, respectively). Waist and hip circumferences, adjusted for confounders, did not show statistically significant relationships with the number of children. Moreover, groups with low and high parity did not significantly differ in hip/BMI and waist/BMI ratios, which were proposed to be indicators of covert form of maternal depletion (after controlling for overall body fatness and age). In conclusion, parity caused a slightly higher body mass and BMI later in life. However, parity did not lead to covert maternal depletion, perhaps because women in this population have relatively high-dietary intake of PUFAs. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] An Imperfect Contraceptive Society: Fertility and Contraception in ItalyPOPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 3 2009Alessandra Gribaldo Italy represents an unexpected and in some ways paradoxical outcome in terms of fertility control: a drop to one of the lowest birth rates in the world has been accompanied by continuing extensive use of traditional methods despite the availability of modern contraception. Using data from 349 interviews conducted in 2005,06 in four Italian cities, we argue that Italian women commonly achieve "unplanned" and desired conceptions through the use of withdrawal and natural methods. While data from other countries reveal similar notions of ambivalence surrounding pregnancy intentions and contraceptive use, Italy stands out for the surprising correlation between highly "managing" the conditions under which children are born and the socially commended approach of "letting births happen." Such results suggest the need to rethink theoretical understandings of low fertility. Through the use of non-technological methods, individuals manipulate culturally produced norms and beliefs about the appropriate time to have a child; simultaneously, their actions are embedded in larger cultural, economic, and political processes. [source] Delayed Marriage and Very Low Fertility in Pacific AsiaPOPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 3 2007Gavin W. Jones The general decline in fertility levels in Pacific Asia has in its vanguard countries where fertility rates are among the lowest in the world. A related trend is toward delayed marriage and nonmarriage. When prevalence of cohabitation in European countries is allowed for, levels of "effective singlehood" in many countries of Pacific Asia have run ahead of those in northern and western Europe. This raises questions about the extent to which delayed marriage has been implicated in fertility declines, and whether the same factors are leading both to delayed marriage and to lowered fertility within marriage. The article argues that involuntary nonmarriage is likely to be more common in Pacific Asia than in Western countries, and that resultant involuntary childlessness plays a substantial role in the low fertility rates currently observed. [source] Sex, Breastfeeding, and Marital Fertility in Pretransition ChinaPOPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 2 2007William Lavely Coital frequency is at the heart of the debate over low marital fertility in pretransition China. This study argues that coital frequency in contemporary China is indicative of sexual behavior in an earlier era. Frequency of intercourse is low in China relative to Europe, a natural outgrowth of a traditional family system and related sexual culture only partially transformed by a century of family revolution. Customary sexual behaviors and breastfeeding practices together shaped the Chinese historical fertility regime as they did the European. As explanations for China's low marital fertility, these proximate determinants leave little scope for the operation of fecundity-reducing malnutrition on the one hand, or deliberate fertility control on the other. The fertility regimes of other pretransition agrarian societies more closely resemble China's than Europe's, seeming to confirm a pattern of European demographic exceptionalism. [source] When Does Religion Influence Fertility?POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 1 2004Kevin McQuillan Religious affiliation as a determinant of demographic behavior is receiving renewed attention in demography. Interest in the role of cultural factors in affecting fertility and a specific concern with the role of Islam in many developing countries have helped re-invigorate research on the role of religion. This article reviews theoretical and empirical work on that relationship, with special attention to a number of cases in which religion has been identified as an important determinant of fertility patterns. The article concludes that religion plays an influential role when three conditions are satisfied: first, the religion articulates behavioral norms with a bearing on fertility behavior; second, the religion holds the means to communicate these values and promote compliance; and, third, religion forms a central component of the social identity of its followers. [source] Fertility and Distorted Sex Ratios in a Rural Chinese County: Culture, State, and PolicyPOPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 4 2003Rachel Murphy This article explores how gender bias in population policies interacts with local culture to reinforce distortions in sex ratios among infants and young children in rural China. It argues that population policies introduce new sources of inequality into local culture while, conversely, gender inequalities embedded in local culture influence formal population policy and practice. Applying an institutional approach to the study of an agricultural county in Jiangxi province, southeast China, the analysis identifies four ways in which an interplay between gender bias in policy and culture produces gendered fertility outcomes: (1) the creation of gendered official categories such as "daughter-only households"; (2) a male bias embedded in local government; (3) the use of local gender norms in state pedagogy; and (4) the reworking or subverting of official norms in ways that reinforce gender inequalities in local reproductive culture. The article concludes that despite indications of contestation of village patriarchy, discrimination against daughters is likely to persist. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||