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Easier said than done: childbearing intentions and their realization in a short term perspective

Author

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  • Anne-Kristin Kuhnt

    (Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany)

  • Heike Trappe

Abstract

This paper studies the short-term fertility intentions of women and men and their subsequent behavior. On the one hand, the predictive strength of fertility intentions is of interest. On the other hand, the most important determinants that inhibit or enable the realization of fertility intentions are analyzed. Data from the first three waves of the German Family Panel (pairfam) are used in the analysis. The theoretical model is derived from the Theory of Planned Behavior. Its validity for the realization of short-term childbearing intentions is tested in the low-fertility context of Germany. Our descriptive findings indicate that fertility intentions have a certain predictive strength. Individuals who reported a strong desire to have a child within the next two years were the most likely to have had a child. However, negative intentions were even more predictive of subsequent behavior. For the women and men with positive fertility intentions, the chances of failure were relatively high. The multivariate results suggest that being in a stable relationship was by far the most important determinant of whether individuals had and realized positive fertility intentions. In addition, financial security and parenthood status were strong determinants. Social pressure exerted by the parents was also a factor, as subjective norms appear to have affected the realization of positive intentions.

Suggested Citation

  • Anne-Kristin Kuhnt & Heike Trappe, 2013. "Easier said than done: childbearing intentions and their realization in a short term perspective," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2013-018, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:wpaper:wp-2013-018
    DOI: 10.4054/MPIDR-WP-2013-018
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    as
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    Cited by:

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    2. Kuhnt, Anne-Kristin & Buhr, Petra, 2016. "Biographical risks and their impact on uncertainty in fertility expectations: A gender-specific study based on the German Family Panel," Duisburger Beiträge zur soziologischen Forschung 2016-03, University of Duisburg-Essen, Institute of Sociology.
    3. Sebastian Pink, 2018. "Anticipated (Grand-)Parental Childcare Support and the Decision to Become a Parent," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 34(5), pages 691-720, December.
    4. Olusegun Sunday Ewemooje & Elizabeth Biney & Acheampong Yaw Amoateng, 2020. "Determinants of fertility intentions among women of reproductive age in South Africa: evidence from the 2016 demographic and health survey," Journal of Population Research, Springer, vol. 37(3), pages 265-289, September.
    5. Zuzanna Brzozowska & Isabella Buber-Ennser & Bernhard Riederer, 2021. "Didn’t Plan One but got One: Unintended and sooner-than-intended Parents in the East and the West of Europe," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 37(3), pages 727-767, July.
    6. Zuzanna Brzozowska & Isabella Buber-Ennser & Bernhard Riederer & Michaela Potancokova, 2018. "Didn’t plan one but got one: unintended and sooner-than-intended births among men and women in six European countries," VID Working Papers 1805, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna.

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    Keywords

    Germany; family demography; fertility;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

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

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