Declining Birth Rates

It is evident that the family structures have dramatically transitioned over the past 100 years. The “Leave it to the Beaver” family is a thing of the past standards and a number of variations have been formed over the years. In the United States, there are six particular kinds of family configurations that are recognized by the modern society. Some of these family structures are naturally falling into several categories. For instance, a single parent family living in a large, extended family set up. Even though these types of families differ in definition, the lines are not very clear when it comes to practice.

Throughout human history individuals around the world, of various ethnic, racial, cultural backgrounds have linked together to form what people call today families. A lot of questions come to mind when contemplating the complex relationship people have. Since families have a direct bearing on society now and on future generations it is essential to take seriously what is happening to the family. Is the American family in decline, and if so what should be done about it? “Traditionally, family has been defined as a unit made up of two or more people who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption: live together; form an economic unit, and bear and raise children (Benokraitis, 3).” The definition of decline is to “fail in strength, vigor, character, value, deteriorate, slant downward.” The traditional nuclear family consists of a father provider, mother-homemaker, and at least one child (Brym and Lie, 252).” The nuclear family is a distinct and universal family form because it performs five important functions in society:sexual regulation, economic cooperation, reproduction, socialization, and emotional support. Research from the 1950 's to the present will emphasize what trends are taking place among American families. Family trends might not have expected???

Discuss the declining birthrate in Russia and other countries in the region. What do you think the impact of this decline can have on neighboring countries and regions? Are similar declines happening elsewhere? The declining birthrate is seen all throughout Russia and neighboring countries. A lot is due to many choosing to have less children and also the high mortality rate of younger men. It seems that Europe and the United States are also seeing a decline in the birthrate, but not as bad as

In Chapter 15: Aging and the Elderly, the U.S. birth rate has been falling for more than a century. It happens because children are more likely to survive into adulthood, and so couple have fewer children. As more women work outside the home, they choose to have fewer children. Greater material wealth and advances in medicine have raised living standards so that people benefit from better housing and more nutrition. The oldest segment of the U.S. population, is increasing rapidly and is already forty times greater than in 1900.

After the war came the post war “Baby Boom.” According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the birth rate increased dramatically from 2.49 to 3.77 between 1945 and 1957. The number of children ages 0-4 went from 11,000,000 to 16,410,000 and continued into the sixties were it peaked 20,000,000. The number of children under the age of nineteen rose from 51 million to 69 million. Nevertheless, the number of adults age ranging from 20-64, had also increased,

The families in America are steadily changing. While they remain our most valued and consistent source of strength and comfort, some families are becoming increasingly unstructured. In the past, the typical family consists of a working father, a stay at home mother and, of course, well-rounded children. Today, less than 20 percent of American families fit nicely into this cookie cutter image. American households have never been more diverse. Natalie Angier takes stock of the changing definition of family in an article for the New York Times.

After the end of World War 2, birth rates across the nation spiked. More babies were born in 1946 than ever before with a grand number of 3.4 million! This was the beginning of the so-called “baby boom.” In 1947, another 3.8 million babies were born, 3.9 million were born in 1952,and more than 4 million were born every year from 1954. In 1964, the boom finally tapered off. By then, there were 76.4 million “baby boomers” in the United States (Staff). This made up close to forty percent of the nations population!

Birth rate is defined as the number of live births per thousand of population per year. The US birth rate has dropped to the lowest point in over 10 years. In the first quarter of 2017, the rate fell to 61.5 births per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44. This has fallen from the previous year of 62.5 births per 1,000 women. (Emanuel, CNN, 2017)

There are many key demographic indicators that make up each country. One of them is the crude birth rate. In Canada for example, the crude birth rate is 11 which is considered low. The crude birth rate is the number of live births per thousand of population per year. When this is compared to the world birth rate it is a little lower. According to the table provided the crude birth rate is a stable indicator. It is stable because it has not changed much in recent years and is pretty even to the region of Canada. Because it is stable, it is also a good environment to live in. The birth rate is low because in Canada there are higher standards of living, in addition to higher education levels. With the total fertility rate being low, that can come in the factor of the low birth rate from the last couple of years. 2.1 children per woman are required to replace the population in the absence of migration. Some key factors of why the fertility rate fell were for 3 costly events that affected a lot of countries. First in the 1930s it had a big decline due to the great depression. In the 1970s it also declined due to the energy crisis. The last major event was in 2011 and it was the Great Recession. With the Great Recession there were high unemployment rates. During the Great Depression period the total fertility rate was declining because there were many couples that used birth control to limit their family size.

It is clear that USA's rate birth is around 11 percent in 1920 and variety vicinity of 13 percent in next 15 years. There was very a sharply decreased in the fertility rate low of 5 percent in 1945. Afterward, it is turnaround increased dramatically approximate 3 times during the next year. Next half of decade, however, moderated declined in this figure.

This factors coupled in the last decades with a decline in the fertility rate, in maternal and infant morbidity and mortality.

In U.S. alone, Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is almost 3.5 in the early 1960s, then began declining sharply -- to below 3.0 in 1965, to about 2.5 (and temporarily holding steady) in the late 1960s, and down to about 1.8 by the mid-1970s. Hence, the TFR fell by almost half between the early 1960s and the mid-1970s. After a decade of stability at a level of about 1.8, the total fertility rate rose slowly after 1986, reaching 2.08 in 1990. It presently stands at a little over 2, just slightly below the replacement level of 2.11 (Fluctuating Fertility: The Baby Boom and the Baby Bust).

Fertility is one of the main issues discussed when talking about the demography of the United States. The U.S. economy plays a rather large role in the rising and falling patterns of the country’s fertility rate. In many past occurrences of economic hardship in the country fertility levels had decreased. One of the main reasons for that being in times of financial struggle, men and women are less likely to want to have children. Being able to support a family is already a difficult task but when people are getting laid off from jobs, unemployment rates are increasing, and the economy is struggling many people can barely afford to buy necessities for themselves never mind for an entire family. An extended decrease in fertility levels could

Over the last 20 years, Japan’s low fertility rates have made a significant impact on the age structure of the population. Starting with the below-replacement total fertility rate of 1.39 in 1997, this fostered the decline in population (U.S. Census Bureau). In recent years, the fertility rate in 2017 was 1.41, barely higher than the rate 20 years ago (U.S. Census Bureau). As total fertility rates remain low, population aging occurs as fewer children are

The Age Specific Fertility Rate is contingent on the age of a woman and places her in groups of women based on their age and then predicts how many babies each woman is expected to have over a period of time based on a specific population (Poston & Bouvier, 2010, p. 45). In Singapore, the Age Specific Fertility Rate peaked for women between the ages 30-34 in 1997, 2007, and 2017. However, while there was a reduction in fertility rates for all ages across a women’s life span from 1997 to 2007, there was a slight increase in fertility rates in 2017 for the age groups 30-34, 34-39, 40-44, and 45-49 (Refer to Graph 1). While elderly women tend to have fewer babies on average than younger ones, which is true for Singapore, the slight increase in childbearing in later years indicates changes in the structure of individual lives and the society as a whole. This data ultimately suggests that women in Singapore are waiting longer to get married and have children, which are pertinent causes of the country’s low fertility and ageing population.