Is Latin America starting to retreat from early and universal childbearing?

The 2000 censuses show that the proportion of women below age 30 who are mothers has dropped substantially in most Latin America countries, suggesting that the social imperative of early motherhood, which has long prevailed in the region, is weakening. Surveys conducted in 14 Latin American countrie...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Demographic research 2009-02, Vol.20, p.169-194
Main Authors: Rosero-Bixby, Luis, Castro-Martín, Teresa, Martín-García, Teresa
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Births
Censuses
Childlessness
Demographics
Demography
Educational Attainment
Families & family life
Females
Fertility
Fertility Decline
Fertility rates
Latin America
Level of education
Motherhood
Mothers
Multivariate analysis
Parental Attitudes
Parenthood
Parents
Research Article
Studies
Surveys
Women
Womens education
Young adults
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Summary:The 2000 censuses show that the proportion of women below age 30 who are mothers has dropped substantially in most Latin America countries, suggesting that the social imperative of early motherhood, which has long prevailed in the region, is weakening. Surveys conducted in 14 Latin American countries in 2006 also show a strong link between childlessness and higher education across several cohorts. We discuss whether the recent increase in childlessness among young women reflects a shift towards later childbearing, a novel trend in the Latin American context, and also whether it may signal an emerging retreat from universal childbearing in the region.
ISSN:1435-9871
2363-7064
1435-9871
DOI:10.4054/DemRes.2009.20.9