Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

A History of Fertility in America

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Transition to Parenthood

  • 1385 Accesses

Abstract

Over the past century fertility patterns in the United States have fluctuated and the age of first-time parents has generally increased. With greater family planning resources women have also had the opportunity to delay both marriage and childbearing in pursuit of their education and careers. Later life childbearing has indirectly reduced total birth rates in the United Sates, Asian and many European countries. This chapter describes trends in ages of new parents and societal influences that have impact on these trends are discussed. Geographical differences are also highlighted as many trends differ across different regions. The chapter concludes with concerns that need to be addressed by future research and the need for more family supportive public policy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 69.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 89.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Abma, J. C., Chandra, A., Mosher, W. D., Peterson, L. S., & Piccinino, L. J. (1997). Fertility, family planning, and women’s health: New data from the 1995 National Survey of Family Growth. Vital and Health Statistics (Series 23, No. 19). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_23/sr23_019.pdf

  • Amato, P. R., & Maynard, R. A. (2007). Decreasing nonmarital births and strengthening marriage to reduce poverty. The Future of Children, 17(2), 117–141.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, N. (2004). Reduced female marriage opportunity and history of single parenthood. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 35(6), 648–651.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bauman, K. J., & Graf, N. L. (2003). Education attainment: 2000. Census 2000 Brief. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/c2kbr-24.pdf

  • Belsky, J. (1985). Exploring individual differences in marital change across the transition to parenthood: The role of violated expectations. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 47, 1037–1044.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., & Pensky, E. (1988). Marital change across the transition to parenthood. Marriage and Family Review, 12, 133–156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., & Rovine, M. (1990). Patterns of marital change across the transition to parenthood: Pregnancy to three years postpartum. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 5–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., Spanier, G. B., & Rovine, M. (1983). Stability and change in marriage across the transition to parenthood. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 45, 553–566.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Belsky, J., Lang, M., & Huston, T. L. (1986). Sex-typing and division of labor as determinants of marital change across the transition to parenthood. Journal of Research in Personality, 50, 517–522.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blossfeld, H., & Jaenichen, U. (1992). Educational expansion and changes in women’s entry into marriage and motherhood in the Federal Republic of Germany. Journal of Marriage and Family, 54(2), 302–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callan, V. (1981). Population and psychology: New approaches to the determinants of fertility. Australian Psychologist, 16(1), 9–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (1999, December 2). Achievements in public health, 1900–1999: Family planning. MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4847a1.htm

  • Coley, R. L. (2001). Invisible men: Emerging research on low-income, unmarried, and minority fathers. American Psychologist, 56, 743–753.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connell, E. B. (1999). Contraception in the prepill era. Contraception, 59, 7S–10S.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connor, M. E., & White, J. L. (2006). Fatherhood in contemporary Black America: Invisible but present. In M. E. Connor & W. L. Joseph (Eds.), Black fathers: An invisible presence in America. New York: Psychology Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, P., & Cowan, C. P. (1998). New families: Modern couples as new pioneers. In M. A. Mason, A. Skolnick, & S. D. Sugarman (Eds.), All our families: New policies for a new century (pp. 162–192). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cowan, C. P., Cowan, P. A., Heming, G., Garrett, E., Coysa, W. S., Curtis Boles, H., & Boles, A. J., III (1985). Transition to parenthood: His, hers, and theirs. Journal of Family Issues, 6, 451–481.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crohan, S. E. (1996). Marital quality and conflict across the transition to parenthood in African American and white couples. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 58, 933–944.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Daniels, P., & Weingarten, K. (1982). Sooner or later: The timing of parenthood in adult lives. New York: Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Darling-Fisher, C. S., & Tiedje, L. B. (1990). The impact of maternal employment characteristics on fathers’ participation in child care. Family Relations, 39, 20–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dribe, M., & Stanfors, M. (2009). Education, work and parenthood: Comparing the experience of young men and women in Sweden. Journal of Family and Economic Issues, 30, 32–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dykstra, P. A., & Hagestad, G. O. (2007). Childlessness and parenthood in two centuries: Different roads-different maps? Journal of Family Issues, 28(11), 1518–1532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Elder, G. H, Jr. (1974). Children of the great depression. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Forest, K. B., Moen, P., & Dempster-McClain, D. (1995). Cohort differences in the transition to motherhood: The variable effects of education and employment before marriage. The Sociological Quarterly, 36(2), 315–336.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamilton, B. E., Martin, J. A., & Ventura, S. V. (2011). Births: Preliminary data for 2010. National Vital Statistic Report, 60(2). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr60/nvsr60_02.pdf

  • Hamilton B. E., Martin J. A., & Ventura S. J. (2012). Births: Preliminary data for 2011. National Vital Statistics Reports, 61(5). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr61/nvsr61_05.pdf

  • Heath, D. T. (1994). The impact of delayed fatherhood on the father-child relationship. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 155(4), 511–527.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hobbs, D. F, Jr. (1965). Parenthood as crisis: A third study. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 27, 367–372.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hobbs, D. F, Jr. (1968). Transition to parenthood: A replication and an extension. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 30, 413–417.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hobbs, D. F., & Maynard-Wimbish, J. (1977). Transition to parenthood by Black couples. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 39, 677–689.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kemkes-Grottenthaler, A. (2003). Postponing or rejecting parenthood? Results of a survey among female academic professionals. Journal of Biosocial Science, 35, 213–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirmeyer, S. E., & Hamilton, B. E. (2011). Transition between childlessness and first birth: Three generations of U.S. women. Vital and Health Statistics (Series 2, No.153). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_02/sr02_153.pdf

  • Landale, N. S., & Oropesa, R. S. (2007). Hispanic families: Stability and change. Annual Review of Sociology, 33, 381–405. doi:10.1146/annurev.soc.33.040406.131655.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, L. (2011). Maternity leave and employment patterns of first-time mothers: 1961–2008. Current Population Reports (pp. 70–128). Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/p70-128.pdf

  • LeMasters, E. E. (1957). Parenthood as crisis. Marriage and Family Living, 19, 352–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levy-Shiff, R. (1994). Individual and contextual correlates of marital change across the transition to parenthood. Developmental Psychology, 30, 591–601.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln, R. (1972). Population and the American future: The commission’s final report. Family Planning Perspectives, 4(2), 10–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Livingston, G. & Cohn, D. (2010). The new demographics of American motherhood. Pew Research Center: A social & Demographic Trends Report. Retrieved from http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2010/05/06/the-new-demography-of-american-motherhood/

  • Macklin, E. D. (1980). Nontraditional family forms: A decade of research. Journal of Marriage and Family, 42(4), 905–922.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, J. A., Hamilton, B. E., Sutton, P. D., Ventura, S. J., Menacker, F., Kirmeyer, S., & Mathews, T. J. (2009). Births: final data for 2006. National Vital Statistic Report, 57(7). Retrieved August 12, 2012 from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr57/nvsr57_07.pdf

  • Martin, J. A., Hamilton, B. E., Ventura, S. J., Osterman, M. J. K., Kirmeyer, S., Mathews, T. J., & Wilson, E. C. (2011). Births: Final Data for 2009. National Vital Statistic Report, 60 (1). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr60/nvsr60_01.pdf

  • Martinez, G. Daniels, K., & Chandra, A. (2012). Fertility of men and women aged 15–44 years in the United States: National survey of family growth, 2006–2010. National Health Statistics Reports, 51. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr051.pdf

  • Mathews, T. J., & Hamilton, B. E. (2002). Mean age of mother, 1970–2000. National Vital Statistics, 51(1). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr51/nvsr51_01.pdf

  • Mathews, T. J., & Hamilton, B. E. (2009). Delayed childbearing: More women are having their first child later in life. National Center for Health Statistics, Data Brief (No. 21). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db21.pdf

  • May, E. T. (1988). Homeward bound: American families in the Cold War Era. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLaughlin, S., Melber, B., Billy, J., Zimmerle, D., Winges, L., & Johnson, T. (1988). The changing lives of American women. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, B. C., & Sollie, D. L. (1980). Normal stresses during the transition to parenthood. Family Relations, 29, 459–464.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Modell, J. (1989). Into one’s own: From youth to adulthood in the United States, 1920–1975. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moore, M. J., O’Connell & Rogers, C. C. (1979). Fertility of American women: 1978. Current Population Reports (Series P-20, No. 341). Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nomaguchi, K. M. (2006). Time of one’s own: Employment, leisure, and delayed transition to motherhood in Japan. Journal of Family Issues, 27(12), 1668–1700.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Raeff, C. (1996). A cultural analysis of maternal self-conceptions. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 17, 271–306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rindfuss, R. R., & St. John, C. (1983). Social determinants of age first birth. Journal of Marriage and Family 45, 553–565.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973).

    Google Scholar 

  • Roosa, M. W. (1988). The effect of age in the transition to parenthood: Are delayed child bearers a unique group? Family Relations, 37, 322–327.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rossi, A. S. (1987). Parenthood in transition: From lineage to child to self-orientation. In J. B. Lancaster, J. Altman, A. S. Rossi, & L. R. Sherrod (Eds.), Parenting across the life span: Biological dimensions (pp. 31–81). Hawthorne, NY: Aldine Publishing Co

    Google Scholar 

  • Roy, K., & Burton, L. (2007). Mothering through recruitment: Kinscription of nonresidential fathers and father figures in low-income families. Family Relations, 56, 24–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruble, D., Fleming, A., Hackel, L. S., & Stangor, C. (1988). Changes in the marital relationship during the transition to first time motherhood: Effects of violated expectations concerning division of household labor. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55, 78–87.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, K., Downs, B., & O’Connell, M. (2001). Maternity leave and employment patterns: 1961–1995. Current Population Reports (pp. 70–79). Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/2001pubs/p70-79.pdf

  • Soloway, N. M., & Smith, R. M. (1987). Antecedents of late birth timing decisions of men and women in dual-career marriages. Family Relations, 36(3), 258–262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taffel, S. (1977). Trends in fertility in the United States. National Vital Statistics System (Series 21 No.28). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_21/sr21_028.pdf

  • Thornton, A., & Young-DeMarco, L. (2001). Four decades of trends in attitudes toward family issues in the United States: The 1960s through the 1990s. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63(4), 1009–1037.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • United Nations Children’s Fund (2001). A league table of teenage births in rich nations. Innocenti Report Card (Issues No. 3). Retrieved from http://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/pdf/repcard3e.pdf

  • U.S. Census Bureau (2012). Most Children Younger Than Age 1 are Minorities, Census Bureau Reports. Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/population/cb12-90.html

  • U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census (1981). Marital status and living arrangements: 1980. Current Population Reports (Series P-20, No. 365). Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/prod/1/pop/p20-365.pdf

  • U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. (1961). Natality. Vital Statistics of the United States, 1. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsus/vsus_1961_1.pdf

  • van Balen, F. (2005). Late parenthood among subfertile and fertile couples: Motivations and educational goals. Patient Education and Counseling, 59, 276–282.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ventura, S. J. (1995). Births to unmarried mothers: United States, 1980–1992. Vital and Health Statistics (Series 21, No. 53). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/series/sr_21/sr21_053.pdf

  • Ventura, S. J. (1999). Statement on Reducing Nonmarital Births. Testimony given before the House Committee on Ways and Means, Subcommittee on Human Resources June 29, 1999. Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/asl/testify/t990629b.html

  • Ventura, S. J., Mathews, T. J., & Hamilton, B. E. (2001). Births to teenagers in the United States, 1940–2000. National Vital Statistics Reports, 49(10). Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr49/nvsr49_10.pdf

  • Wardell, D. (1980). Margaret Sanger: birth control’s successful revolutionary. American Journal of Public Health 70, 736–742. Retrieved on July 12, 2012 from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1619462/pdf/amjph00680-0066.pdf

  • Welles-Nystrom, B. (1997). The meaning of postponed motherhood for women in the United States and Sweden: Aspects of feminism and radical timing strategies. Health Care for Women International, 18(3), 279–299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkie, J. R. (1981). The trend toward delayed parenthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 43(3), 583–591.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wineberg, H., & McCarthy, J. (1989). Child spacing in the United States: Recent trends and differentials. Journal of Marriage and Family, 51(1), 213–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, California State University, Long Beach, 1250 Bellflower Boulevard, Long Beach, CA, 90840-0501, USA

    Roudi Nazarinia Roy

  2. School of Family Studies and Human Services, Kansas State University, 311 Justin Hall, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA

    Walter R. Schumm

  3. School of Family Studies and Human Services, Kansas State University, 317 Justin Hall, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA

    Sonya L. Britt

Authors
  1. Roudi Nazarinia Roy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Walter R. Schumm
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Sonya L. Britt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Roudi Nazarinia Roy .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Nazarinia Roy, R., Schumm, W.R., Britt, S.L. (2014). A History of Fertility in America. In: Transition to Parenthood. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-7768-6_1

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation