Population literature has long investigated the effects of education on
fertility rates. Trends seem to demonstrate an inverse relationship, indicating
that as literacy and education rates rise, fertility rates subsequently
declines. However, recent trends seem to indicate that not only are fertility
rates declining amongst educated women, but there has been a marked decrease
in fertility rates amongst uneducated women. This paper briefly highlights
two studies that investigate the effects of education of others on fertility
rates. This paper is divided into six sections. The first section will introduce
several demographic and societal variables commonly found to affect fertility
rates. The second section will discuss the manner through which education
of others fosters lower fertility rates amongst uneducated women, specifically
discussing social interaction effects. The third section highlights the
effects of aggregate education on a population. The fourth section addresses
the specific cases of India and Sub-Saharan Africa. The fifth section discusses
the implications of these finding for policy decisions. The final section
summarizes the paper.
Demographic Explanations of Fertility
A vast amount of literature has confirmed that education is inversely related
to fertility levels throughout both developing and developed countries.
Education of women changes family dynamics. With higher levels of education
families tend to become more nucleated and move away from living with extended
family (Kravdal, 2002). Education also directly affects the preferences
of women and families such that with higher levels of education satisfaction
can be attained from sources outside of children. Infant mortality rates
decrease and health conditions improve with higher levels of education,
reducing the necessity to increase fertility to ensure the survival of a
single child (Kravdal, 2002). However, there are many other demographic
and socioeconomic variables besides education that form a strong connection
to fertility rates.
In many countries throughout the world, children are considered to be valuable
assets to a family. In developing countries in particular, children provide
additional labor and therefore additional income. In these locations, fertility
rates tend to be higher. In many regions of the world there is a strict
preference for male births. Boys in particular are seen as an economic asset
because they stay with their families and provide old-age security to their
parents. Cultures that express a strict preference for males over females
also tend to exhibit higher birth rates (Kravdal, 2002).
Previous studies have identified wealth and urbanization to be inversely
related to fertility. Wealth seems to reduce the demand for children as
the reliance on children for economic security decreases. Urbanization also
appears to lower the demand for children. In an urban culture versus an
agrarian society, the number of children needed to work is substantially
lower (Kravdal, 2002).
Culture also has a role in influencing fertility rates. With the adaptation
of Western ideals, it becomes more acceptable for women to join the workforce.
It then follows that the opportunity cost of child-rearing increases. Such
cultural changes can be contributing factors in the reduction of fertility.
Education of Others and the Uneducated
Education is a widely studied variable in the population equation. Just
like similar demographic, economic and cultural contributors, education
can greatly influence fertility rates in a population. Many studies have
focused on how the education of an individual woman can affect her choice
to have children. However, the present studies investigate the influence
that an educated society can have on an uneducated woman's child-bearing
decision.
A multilevel analysis shows that the education of others can reduce fertility
rates amongst the uneducated. However, the proximity of the exposure to
education can have profound effects. On the household level, an educated
man provides the main source of educational externalities. This means that
if a woman marries an educated man, there is a greater reduction in fertility
rate than would be observed if she were to have an uneducated spouse. An
effect of education on a community level can also be observed. The community
literacy rate has a positive effect on contraceptive use amongst uneducated
women (McNay, 2002). An importance difference between household level and
community level influences of education is that within the household, an
educated male is more influential while in the community at large the educational
level of women is more influential. The education of others has a positive
effect on contraceptive use amongst uneducated women. However, the mechanism
through which this is possible is not fully understood. One model suggests
that social interaction is the factor that is responsible for this outcome.
Social interaction can take on two main forms: social learning and social
influence (Kravdal, 2002, McNay, 2002). Social learning is an active way
of adopting information from the environment. The process can occur through
interpersonal relations or through impersonal means, such as the media.
Social influence is a more passive form of behavior modeling. Specifically
an uneducated woman may model the behavior of contraceptive use of an educated
woman in an attempt to adapt to societal norms or gain approval (Kravdal,
2002). While it is difficult to identify the exact sources of diffusion,
emulation of media outlets, including radio and cinema, as well as the imitation
of others' behavior is the likely source for the influence of education
of others on uneducated women.
Aggregate Education and Fertility
So far the, effect of education of others on uneducated women has been explored.
However, an increased community level of education can also have a positive
effect on the contraceptive use amongst educated women. In fact, in many
cases, the influence on educated women can be more powerful (Kravdal, 2002).
It is possible that as the general education level increase within a community,
the transmission of ideas becomes more efficient. Attitudes towards fertility
can be easily shared and spread when citizens have a higher literacy rate.
It then follows that societal and cultural changes can more easily occur
to make increased fertility against the norm. In a highly educated society,
social diffusion works more quickly and the message is disseminated to more
families with higher efficiency. Thus, it has been demonstrated that the
education of others can successfully reduce fertility both amongst the educated
and uneducated sectors of the population.
Education and Fertility: The Cases of India and Sub-Saharan Africa
The case of India provides a concrete example of the ways in which the education
of others can affect fertility rates amongst uneducated women. In India,
it was found that uneducated women were using contraceptives with increased
frequency. Traditional approaches had considered the ways that directly
educating a woman could lead to reduced fertility rates. However, direct
education cannot possibly explain the increased use of contraceptives amongst
the uneducated population. The study concludes, "Many of the forces
driving down the demand for children and increasing the use of contraception
among these women operate beyond their own individual circumstances"
(McNay, 2002, p 38). The positive influence of the educated other combined
with social interaction has allowed the uneducated women of India to lead
the way towards fertility transition in that country (McNay, 2002).
Similar results were found in a study that focused on Sub-Saharan Africa.
Increases in the education level of the community led to a decrease in fertility
rate. The level of education was not only found to influence the uneducated
segment of the population but had large effects on the already educated
portion of the population (Kravdal, 2002). However, some unexplained variation
was found between countries whereby some conformed to the pattern of educational
influence, while others did not. The authors state, "An additional
year of aggregate education reduces total fertility, regardless of the woman's
own education, but less markedly for the poorly educated" (Kravdal,
2002, p 244). This study identifies the influence of education on fertility,
but acknowledges some limitations. Demographic effects such as wealth still
seem to be of high importance to fertility rates in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Structural and cultural factors may also be partly responsible (Kravdal,
2002).
Policy Implications
The current literature has found education to be an important factor in
fertility reduction. This effect reaches both previously educated and uneducated
segments of the population. These results suggest that a focus on continued
policies to increase education is important to the reduction of fertility.
Policies that encourage general levels of education, in addition to contraceptive
and fertility specific education can be effective as increases in general
levels of education promote easier communication and transmission of ideas
across populations.
While the transmission mechanism is less well understood, social interaction
is a plausible explanation. Policy implications include increased spending
on mass media that promotes contraceptive use can be highly effective. Commercials
and television can influence behavior through modeling and can thus provide
a relatively easy way to diffuse educational information and promote fertility
reduction.
Conclusion
This paper has identified several variables that affect fertility rates
in both the developing world. These include social, economic and cultural
factors. Societal and cultural norms as well as the level of wealth can
highly influence and dictate fertility decisions. However, education is
a factor that combines many of these considerations.
Previous studies have identified a negative link between education and fertility
rates. The present studies discuss the possibility that the education of
others reduces fertility through a social interaction mechanism. While not
all data is consistent, the studies show that increased levels of education
within a community significantly contribute the increased use of contraceptives
and decreased fertility in India and Sub-Saharan Africa. These trends are
promising and indicative that the effects of education can be compounded
within a society and serve a greater role than was previously thought.
Kravdal, Oyestein. (2002). "Education and Fertility in Sub-Saharan Africa: Individual and Community Effects". Demography. 39(2), pp. 233-250.
McNay, P. Arokiasamy; R. H. Cassen. (2003). "Why are Uneducated Women in India Using Contraception? A Multilevel Analysis". Population Studies. 57(1), pp 21-40.