Fifty years ago, parenthood was almost an obligation. Today, some American politicians are berating women who choose to remain childless. It is important to realize that remaining childless is not unique to American women. During the past 50 years, birth rates all over the world, including China, Japan, Europe, and the United States, have been declining dramatically. Furthermore, a 2020 analysis of data from almost 200 countries found that the average number of children a woman had declined from 4.7 in 1950 to 2.4 in 2017. This trend has not gone unnoticed; however, a complete explanation is difficult to find. Some scientists have speculated about the effects of environmental toxins, such as the “forever chemicals” that can impair sperm count and motility. Consistent with this speculation, about 20 percent of Americans who want to become parents are facing infertility problems.
Many recent polls have discovered that a variety of psychological factors are also involved.
A recent Pew Research Center poll found that about one-third of young people of child-bearing age (18-34 yrs) weren’t sure if they wanted children, and about 20 percent said that they had already decided that they don’t want any children. That follows a rise between 2018 and 2021 in the percentage of nonparents under 50 who said they were “not too likely” or “not likely at all” to have kids (16% versus 21% and 21% versus 23%, respectively). Financial realities also play a major role. It’s much harder to move out of their parent’s home and buy the first starter house due to high mortgage rates and the loss of many high-paying middle-class jobs. Financial concerns often bias women to delay the decision to have children until they are financially secure; sometimes, until their biological clocks have progressed too far.
Today, in most developed countries, women have alternatives to being a mother and often feel the need to choose a lifestyle that better fits their interests and goals. Studies also show that climate and political realities also play a major role in their decision.
A meta-analysis found that worries about the impact of global climate change significantly influenced the desire to have children. Thirty-nine percent of young people globally reported feeling hesitant about having children because of their concerns about the long-term consequences of climate change on the future quality of life of their children. This contrasts with past generations who felt that children were their contributions to the future success of society. Climatologists warn that our children will experience a very challenging and difficult environment within the next 50 to 75 years.
Many countries, including many companies within the United States, offer no paid parental leave policy and childcare is either expensive or not easily available. Subsequently, working mothers experience more stress, and lower life and relationship satisfaction. Only about one-third of married mothers report having high relationship satisfaction, while about two-thirds of married women without children report having high relationship satisfaction.
Do women regret being childless when they are older? A recent study from Michigan State University reported that about 20 percent of adults in Michigan are child-free by choice. The study found no evidence that older child-free adults experienced any greater levels of life regret than older adults who were parents. This finding is consistent with studies from other developed countries where about five to 15 percent of parents say that they wish that they had decided to be child-free. The reasons for this level of regret were not delineated.
In the United States, the recent loss of reproductive rights has further complicated a woman’s decision to become pregnant. Depending upon which state a woman lives in, accidental pregnancies have potentially lethal consequences. This is not a trivial matter given that according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about half of pregnancies in the United States are unplanned. Being pregnant has always carried a significant risk; today, those risks have been amplified by politicians. Some states do allow exceptions for rape and incest, which essentially means that politicians will only allow a woman to have control over her body only after someone has violated her first.
Humans are now facing two existential threats to their future, the effects of global climate change on our ability to adapt and survive and a significant decline in the number of humans available to populate the earth.
