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Comparative Study
. 2011 Mar;26(3):616-22.
doi: 10.1093/humrep/deq360. Epub 2010 Dec 15.

Social age deadlines for the childbearing of women and men

F C Billari  1 , A Goisis, A C Liefbroer, R A Settersten, A Aassve, G Hagestad, Z Spéder
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Social age deadlines for the childbearing of women and men

F C Billari et al. Hum Reprod. 2011 Mar.

Abstract

Background: This study examines whether social age deadlines exist for childbearing in women and men, how they vary across countries, whether they are lower than actual biological deadlines and whether they are associated with childbearing at later ages and the availability of assisted reproduction techniques (ARTs).

Methods: This study is based on the European Social Survey, Round 3 (2006-2007), which covers 25 countries. Data were gathered on social age deadlines for childbearing in women (21 909 cases) and men (21 239 cases) from samples of representative community-dwelling populations aged 15 and older.

Results: Social age deadlines for childbearing were perceived more frequently for women than men. These deadlines are often lower than actual biological limits, and for women and men alike: 57.2% of respondents perceived a maternal social age deadline ≤ 40 years of age; 46.2% of the respondents perceived a paternal social age deadline ≤ 45 years of age. There is also considerable variability in deadlines across countries, as well as within them. At the country level, the presence of social age deadlines for the childbearing of women was negatively associated with birth rates at advanced ages and the prevalence of ART, and later deadlines were positively associated with these factors.

Conclusions: It is important to understand the factors that increase and limit late fertility. While biological factors condition fertility, so do social expectations. These findings provide widespread evidence across Europe that social limits exist alongside biological ones, though both sets of factors are more binding for women.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Frequency distribution of social age deadlines for women and men. Source: Authors’ computations, ESS, 2006–2007. The percentages are computed based on those respondents who perceive an age deadline. Values below 26 and above 80 were dropped from the analyses and the percentage of respondents perceiving a deadline below 30 and above 60 is not reported in the figure. In order to obtain accurate estimates, data were weighted by design weights. See text and ESS website (http://www.europeansocialsurvey.org/) for additional information.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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