Abstract
The recent low fertility of U.S. women has been much heralded. The crude birth rate for 1972 was 15 (below that of the Depression) and the period total fertility rate is below replacement. The crucial question is whether this low fertility is merely a transitory product of delays in marriages and births or whether basic long-run changes have occurred. Although predictions are highly vulnerable, I think recent declines reflect a revolution in the fertility regime. I will outline the argument upon which that conclusion is based and then report briefly on findings which are relevant to points in that argument and concern the relationship between employment and fertility expectations among recently married women.
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References
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© 1974 Plenum Press, New York
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Bumpass, L.L. (1974). Fertility Behavior of American Women. In: Montagna, W., Sadler, W.A. (eds) Reproductive Behavior. Advances in Behavioral Biology, vol 11. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-3069-1_15
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-3069-1_15
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
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