Perspectives on family and fertility in developing countries

Dados Bibliográficos

ID4266791
AutoresM Cain (0000-0001-7129-493X)
Ano1982
Volume36
Fascículo2
Páginas159-175
Data de publicação1982-07-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessNão
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoPopulation Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0032-4728 • E-ISSN: 1477-4747
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00324728.1982.10409026
PMID22077270
OpenAlexW2029289308
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas85
Referências citadas14

Two aspects of the family in relation to fertility in developing countries are discussed: set stratification within the family and extended family networks. As both these are central to J. C. Caldwell's theory of fertility transition, the paper is structured as a critique of his position. Drawing on examples and data from Asia, it is argued that the causal significance of sex stratification for fertility lies in the economic risks it imposes on women, deriving from their dependence on men, rather than, as Caldwell suggests, in the disproportionate gain that men derive from their dominant position within families. While Caldwell and others associate strong extended family networks of mutual obligation and support with persistent high fertility, it is argued here that such systems should, instead, facilitate fertility decline. Close-knit and strong kin networks can be viewed as alternatives to children as sources of insurance, and may facilitate fertility decline by preventing children from becoming the focal point of parental concerns for security

Demographic economics · Demographic transition · Developing country · Economic growth · Economics · Fertility · Obligation · Political science · Population · Position (finance) · Positive economics · Sociology · Demographic Trends and Gender Preferences · Demography · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Law · Psychology · Social Psychology