Economic actions or cultural and social decisions? The role of cultural and social values in shaping fertility intention

Ikhyun Jang, Miyang Jun and Jieun Emma Lee

International Review of Public Administration, 2017, vol. 22, issue 3, 257-275

Abstract: Most industrialized societies have come up with a wide range of policy measures to boost their fertility rates, largely by making fertility behavior economically attractive. While previous research provides cultural and social explanations for fertility decisions, this paper highlights the role of cultural and social values as a moderator between family policy and fertility intention. From a multilevel analysis of ISSP, two findings emerged: first, fertility intentions of individuals are less responsive to family policies that provide financial incentives for such behaviors. Second, governmental expenditure on the family has a positive influence on the fertility intentions of individuals only when they already have a conservative attitude toward gender roles and marriage. These findings raise a fundamental question about the assumptions of mainstream family policy and highlight the importance of taking cultural values into account in family policy design, especially when the aim is to influence individuals’ fertility intentions.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1080/12294659.2017.1368004

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