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Fertility patterns of college graduates by field of study, US women born 1960-79

Bibliographic Data

ID5117470
AuthorsKatherine Michelmore (0000-0002-6288-3561, Cornell University), Kelly Musick (0000-0003-0329-5134, Cornell University)
Year2014
Volume68
Issue3
Pages359-374
Publication date2014-09-02
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenuePopulation Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0032-4728 • E-ISSN: 1477-4747
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00324728.2013.847971
PMID24266547
PMCIDPMC4031310
OpenAlexW2081921303
LanguageEN
Citations received13
References cited45

Building on recent European studies, we used the Survey of Income and Program Participation to provide the first analysis of fertility differences between groups of US college graduates by their undergraduate field of study. We used multilevel event-history models to investigate possible institutional and selection mechanisms linking field of study to delayed fertility and childlessness. The results are consistent with those found for Europe in showing an overall difference of 10 percentage points between levels of childlessness across fields, with the lowest levels occurring for women in health and education, intermediate levels for women in science and technology, and the highest levels for women in arts and social sciences. The mediating roles of the following field characteristics were assessed: motherhood employment penalties; percentage of men; family attitudes; and marriage patterns. Childlessness was higher among women in fields with a moderate representation of men, less traditional family attitudes, and late age at first marriage

Childlessness · Demographic economics · Fertility · Field (mathematics) · Population · Social science · Sociology · Sociology of Education · Demography · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Psychology

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Unique citing works13
Citations per year1,3
Citation span2016 - 2025 (10)
Citation velocityrecent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 12
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