Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2005 Sep 1;31(3):507-527.
doi: 10.1111/j.1728-4457.2005.00081.x.

Intended and Ideal Family Size in the United States, 1970-2002

Kellie J Hagewen, S Philip Morgan

Intended and Ideal Family Size in the United States, 1970-2002

Kellie J Hagewen et al. Popul Dev Rev. .
No abstract available

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1. Average ideal and expected family sizes and total fertility rates for countries of the EU-15 and the United States
SOURCES: TFR estimates from UN Population Division (2003) relating to 1995–2000. Data on ideal and expected family sizes pertain to women aged 20–34. Data for European countries are from Goldstein, Lutz, and Testa (2003). Data for US ideals calculated from GSS data from the 1995–99 period. Data on US expectations calculated from CPS data from 1998.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2. Ideal family size by survey year,a men and women aged 18–46, General Social Survey
aThe 1970–74 period includes data from 1972 and 1974; the 1975–79 period includes data from 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1978; the 1980–84 period includes data from 1982 and 1983; the 1985–89 period includes data from 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1989; the 1990–94 period includes data from 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994; the 1995–99 period includes data from 1996 and 1998; the 2000–02 period includes data from 2000 and 2002.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3. Current and intended average number of children, women aged 20–21 in 1980 (1959–60 birth cohort), Current Population Survey
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4. Current number of children, additional children intended, and implied intended number of children by survey year,a women aged 20–26, General Social Survey and Current Population Survey
aFor the General Social Survey, the 1970–74 period includes data from 1972 and 1974; the 1975–79 period includes data from 1975, 1976, 1977, and 1978; the 1980–84 period includes data from 1982 and 1983; the 1985–89 period includes data from 1985, 1986, 1988, and 1989; and the 1990–94 period includes data from 1990, 1991, 1993, and 1994. For the Current Population Survey, the 1980–84 period includes data from 1980 only; the 1985–89 period includes data from 1985 only; and the 1990–94 period includes data from 1990 only.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Ambert A. The Effect of Children on Parents. New York: Hawthorne Press; 1992.
    1. Belmont L. Birth order, intellectual competence, and psychiatric status. Journal of Individual Psychology. 1977;33:79–104. - PubMed
    1. Belsky J, Kelly J. The Transition to Parenthood: How a First Child Changes a Marriage; Why Some Couples Grow Closer and Others Apart. New York: Delacorte Press; 1994.
    1. Blake J. Can we believe recent data on birth expectations in the United States? Demography. 1974;11:25–44. - PubMed
    1. Blake J. Is zero preferred? American attitudes towards childlessness in the 1970s. Journal of Marriage and the Family. 1979;41:245–257.

LinkOut - more resources