Regional fertility differences in western Germany

An overview of the literature and recent descriptive findings

Bibliographic Data

ID12435233
AuthorsKarsten Hank (0000-0003-1844-7612, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, corresponding author)
Year2001
Volume7
Issue4
Pages243-257
Publication date2001-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Population Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1077-3495 • E-ISSN: 1099-1220
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/ijpg.228
OpenAlexW2014803640
LanguageEN
Citations received36
References cited23

In the years following German unification, researchers' attention has been attracted mainly by the rapid fertility decline in eastern Germany. This has often resulted in neglect of regional fertility differentials within Germany, which reach much further back in time than those currently observed between the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ Länder of the Federal Republic. This paper provides an overview of studies investigating regional fertility differences in post‐war western Germany. Additionally, results of an analysis of official statistics for western German Kreise (districts) in the period 1995–97 are presented. Geographical patterns of high‐ and low‐fertility areas are detected, which have remained basically unchanged by the general fertility decline of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Consistent with findings from earlier studies, population density, family migration and the local occupational structure are still found to be closely associated with regional total fertility rates in the 1990s. The paper concludes with a call for more multilevel studies that –theoretically as well as empirically –link regional social contexts with individual (reproductive) behaviour. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Archaeology · Demographic economics · Development economics · Economics · Family planning · Fertility · Geography · German · Political science · Population · Research methodology · Sociology · Total fertility rate · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · Demography · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving

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