Abstract

PIP: An analysis of the correlation between educational attainment and fertility in China yields the conclusion that policy is a deciding factor in the decline of fertility. Education is negatively correlated with fertility. The average educational level is 5.5 years. Education's effect on fertility occurs around the junior high school level. Rural women generally marry later than urban women. Increased educational attainment is nonetheless still related to later age at marriage. Urban women with an elementary education get married 2.2 years later than illiterate women, and rural women with an elementary education get married 0.6 years later than illiterate women. Urban women tend to be better educated. The average age among all women with a high school education or higher level is 23.5 years. Contraceptive use is unrelated to educational attainment. As educational level rises, method use shows a decline among sterilization acceptors and an increase among IUD or other devices acceptors. Average educational attainment does not vary much between regions. The average number of years for all regions is no more than 7 years, with the exception of three municipalities. Nationally, the correlation coefficient between women's illiteracy and fertility is 0.462. The correlation coefficient between women's average educational attainment and fertility is 0.575. Women's educational attainment and level of illiteracy are found to have a weak and negative impact in regions where attainment is higher than the national average and illiteracy lower than the national average. When fertility is high and population control policies are in effect, fertility declines at about the same rate among women of all educational levels, for except college-educated women where decline is faster. Trends show illiterate and elementary educated women have fertility rates higher than the national average, and fertility among the remaining women is lower than the national average. Family planning policy and implementation play a more important role in changing women's fertility. Cultural and educational factors act as factors influencing the interpretation of policies and perceptions of reproduction.