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The geographical patterns of birth seasonality in Australia

Author

Listed:
  • Tom Wilson

    (Independent researcher)

  • Peter McDonald

    (Australian National University)

  • Jeromey Temple

    (University of Melbourne)

Abstract

Background: Studies have shown how births exhibit seasonal patterns, with peaks and troughs in particular months and seasons. Most of this literature focuses on national-level patterns mainly in countries of the northern hemisphere. Objective: The aim of the paper is to describe key features of contemporary birth seasonality at a subnational scale across Australia. Methods: Data on births across the year by region for the 2001‒2016 period were acquired from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. A Births Index was calculated to standardise for length of month and variations in birth numbers between regions. Choropleth maps and graphs were used to illustrate the geographical patterns. Results: Birth seasonality across Australia’s regions is moderate but the patterns vary in a strongly clustered way. In northern and central latitudes of Australia, births are above-average early in the year (February to April), while in the southeast of the country they tend to be above-average in September and October. Conclusions: The Australian results are consistent with physiological hypotheses that climate and environmental influences have a role in the seasonality of births. Hot and humid summers in northern Australia, and cold winters in the southernmost parts of the country, might be responsible for reducing the number of conceptions below their regional averages for the year. Contribution: We demonstrate how birth seasonality across the regions of Australia has a strong climatic pattern that is consistent with physiological hypotheses.

Suggested Citation

  • Tom Wilson & Peter McDonald & Jeromey Temple, 2020. "The geographical patterns of birth seasonality in Australia," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 43(40), pages 1185-1198.
  • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:43:y:2020:i:40
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2020.43.40
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kasey S. Buckles & Daniel M. Hungerman, 2013. "Season of Birth and Later Outcomes: Old Questions, New Answers," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 95(3), pages 711-724, July.
    2. Janice Compton & Lindsay M. Tedds, 2016. "Effects of the 2001 Extension of Paid Parental Leave Provisions on Birth Seasonality in Canada," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 42(1), pages 65-82, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Yang, Yang & Shang, Han Lin & Raymer, James, 2024. "Forecasting Australian fertility by age, region, and birthplace," International Journal of Forecasting, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 532-548.
    2. Risto Conte Keivabu & Marco Cozzani & Joshua Wilde, 2023. "Temperature and fertility: evidence from Spanish register data," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2023-021, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    3. Doyle, Mary-Alice, 2023. "Seasonal patterns in newborns’ health: quantifying the roles of climate, communicable disease, economic and social factors," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 119971, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Doyle, Mary-Alice, 2023. "Seasonal patterns in newborns’ health: Quantifying the roles of climate, communicable disease, economic and social factors," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    births; seasonality; fertility; regions; spatial demography; climate; Australia;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

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