Patterns of digit preference and avoidance in the age statistics of some recent national censuses: A test of the turner hypothesis

Abstract

The relationship between family type and fertility among Iranian peasant women is examined through multiple classification analysis. It is shown that peasant women living in extended families have a significantly lower level of fertility than do those living in nuclear families. The hypothesis that part of this lower fertility is due to population pressure on the limited resources of the household is tested, and it is noted that women in extended families with three or more “non‐nuclear” members have the lowest level of fertility.     

Household extension and reproductive behaviour in Taiwan

The inflence of household type on reproductive behavior is examined for a national probability sample of Taiwanese women. Data were derived from a 1980 national household survey of the labor force in Taiwan, focusing on 10,624 couples. Reproductive variables include measures of current and prospective fertility as well as cumulative fertility. In spite of remarkable social and economic development over the past 3 decades, extended families are still widely found in Taiwan. Women in extended households have only slightly higher fertility preferences and current fertility than women in nuclear families once marital duration is controlled. Although women in extended households marry earlier and receive more family help with child care than women in nuclear families, such factors are no longer considered sufficient to produce major differentials in reproductive behavior. Residence and husband's class of work are the strongest correlates of whether a household is currently extended or nuclear. In general, the husband's characteristics are more strongly related to family type than the wife's. Findings suggest that preferences for smaller families and low fertility need not await a transformation to a nuclear family structue.     

Comparative analysis of energy intake and physical activity according to household type and presence of metabolic syndrome in middle-aged men based on data from the 7th Korea national health and nutrition examination survey (KNHANES) (2016-2018)

[Purpose] This study analyzed data from the 7^th Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016‒2018) to compare the differences in energy intake and physical activity (PA) levels in middle-aged Korean men aged 40-59 years according to household type and the presence of metabolic syndrome (MetS).[Methods] Data from 2,266 young adults (aged >39 years and <60 years) were obtained from the KNHANES. We analyzed the differences in energy intake and PA levels according to household type and MetS. The presence or absence of MetS was determined by measuring waist circumference, blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, triglyceride, and HDL-C levels.[Results] Regarding total nutritional intake, no relationship with MetS was observed regardless of household type (interaction between MetS and household type: p = 0.875). No differences in total PA were observed between multiple- and single-person households (interaction between MetS and household type: p = 0.122). The relationship between MetS and MetS components according to nutritional intake showed that participants with a higher energy intake had a 27% lower prevalence of low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (p < 0.05) and a 36% higher prevalence of high blood pressure (p < 0.01). The relationship between MetS and MetS components according to the PA level showed significantly reduced prevalence of MetS by approximately 39%, 35%, and 43% (p < 0.01, 0.01, and 0.001) in subjects who were somewhat active, active, and very active, respectively, compared to inactivity.[Conclusion] Middle-aged men showed no difference in nutritional intake and PA between multiple- and single-person households. However, the risk of MetS was significantly higher in participants with approximately 1.5 times the energy intake compared to the group with the lowest energy intake. Moreover, higher levels of PA had a marked positive effect on the risk factors and prevalence of MetS. Therefore, we suggest that reducing the total energy intake and increasing total PA are important for preventing MetS in middle-aged men regardless of household type.     

Socioeconomic status and fertility in rural Bangladesh

Using a unique set of birth registration data from the Demographic Surveillance System of the International Center for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh, for the period 1974-77, and socioeconomic information collected in the 1974 census, fertility was studied in relation to occupation, size of dwelling, number of cows and number of boats owned. The total fertility rate was found to vary between 6 and 6.5 except in the famine year of 1975. There was no consistent relationship between fertility and education of women. The age-specific fertility rates by religion show that Muslims had higher fertility at all ages in 1974 and 1977 and at older ages in 1975 and 1976. Overall, however, fertility of Hindus is consistently lower than that of Muslims, but the relative differences are under 10%. Fertility differentials by occupation showed that the household heads who were farm laborers had relatively lower fertility compared to other occupational groups, except for the year 1977 where the families of service holders were found to have relatively lower fertility. Women in households whose heads were businessmen or farmers (owning their land) had above average fertility. In 1974, households in the business occupational groups had, on average, 1 birth more than other households. Women in households with fishermen as heads had below average fertility in 1974 and 1975, but very high fertility in 1976 and 1977. Fertility levels differed according to the type of household in which the family resided. Nuclear families had below average fertility up to the age of 35 and above average fertility at the end of the reproductive age. In the 15-19 age group, augmented families had higher fertility each year examined. The association between dwelling place and fertility is positive each year, the relative differences in fertility between the groups being largest in 1974. Positive relations were found between economic status and fertility.     

Effect of famine on fertility in a rural area of Bangladesh

Data on household socioeconomic status collected in the 1974 census and registration data on births, deaths, and migrations for the 1974-77 period from the Demographic Surveillance System of the International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh, were used to investigate the effects of the 1974-75 famine on differential fertility in a rural population of Bangladesh. Occupation of household head was used as a measure of socioeconomic status. Overall, fertility declined by 34% over the 1975-76 period and increased by 17% in 1976-77 from the 1974-75 figure. Significantly lower fertility was observed in 1975-76, irrespective of socioeconomic status, but the lower socioeconomic groups were affected more than the higher groups. Post-famine fertility was significantly higher only in the 2 middle occupation categories. The age-specific fertility rates suggest that the famine affected all age groups. The post-famine fertility was higher than that of 1974-75 in all but those aged below 20. At age 40 and over the recovery was slight. Husband-wife separation showed an increase during the famine and particularly among the lower socioeconomic groups. The males of the lower socioeconomic households migrated to other regions to obtain food for the family, thus affecting frequency of coitus. The decline in fertility may be due to several factors: deferred marriage; increase in divorces and husband-wife separations; high fetal wastage; voluntary fertility control through contraception, abstention, or induced abortion; and infecundability. An indirect measure of marriage rate indicated that fewer couples entered into marriage in 1974-75, particularly in the lower socioeconomic groups. Both the higher and lower socioeconomic groups were affected by the famine but the precise mechanisms were not the same. At this stage, it is not feasible to estimate the contribution of each factor to the fertility decline. The lower socioeconomic groups were more affected by husband-wife separations and deferred marriages; the higher socioeconomic groups were affected by mental stress and anxiety.     

Pet Ownership and the Importance of Pets Among Adolescents

ABSTRACT

Pet ownership and the importance of one's pet were examined in a community-based, multi-ethnic sample of adolescents, age 12 to 17 years. Half of the adolescents lived in households with pets where ownership was more common among Whites, teens living in detached single family homes, and among teens in households with annual incomes above $40,000. Ratings of importance of one's pet varied as a function of racial/ethnic group and income. Additionally, the absence of siblings in the household, having sole responsibility for one's pet, and owning a cat or dog were associated with higher levels of pet importance. The considerable variability as a function of race/ethnicity in the likelihood of owning a pet, and the nature of the adolescent's relationship to his/her pet, indicates that future research would benefit by utilizing diverse samples and by attempting to determine why the role of pets in the family is a culturally bound phenomenon.     

Evidence of increasing natural fertility in Taiwan

Abstract

A comparison of the age‐specific marital fertility experience of three successive cohorts in Taiwan indicates that the later cohorts have experienced progressively higher rates of natural fertility at each age from 15–19 to 35–39. Their fecundability is correspondingly higher and post‐partum sterility, shorter. These changes in natural fertility levels occurred almost simultaneously with recorded changes in health and nutrition levels. These findings support the hypothesis that during the process of modernization and the fertility transition, the level of natural fertility increases, potentially as a result of improvements in health and nutrition, and changes in lactation practices. It is the net effect of increases in natural fertility on the one hand and deliberate fertility regulation on the other, that determines the course of fertility over time, especially at early stages of modernization and the fertility transition.     

A dynamic,multi‐level analysis of recent immunization trends in Colombia

Abstract

During 1985–91, Latin American ministries of health carried out the ultimately successful Regional Polio Eradication Initiative. Unprecedented vaccine coverage levels were attained through a combination of mass campaigns, house‐to‐house vaccinations, and improvements in routine immunization services. Little is known, however, about the effects of these interventions on immunization demand; whether they reached so‐called high‐risk households and, if so, whether program effects were sufficient to offset the household risk factors. This paper examines the probability and timing of full immunization over this period in one case country, Colombia. Information on the immunization status of 3,609 vaccine‐eligible children born 1985–90 was extracted from Colombia's 1990 Demographic and Health Survey. Annual immunization coverage estimates from the Colombian Ministry of Health for 1985–90 for 148 sample municipios were appended to each child record, along with household‐level data. Initial non‐parametric regressions showed that five of six observed risk factors negatively influenced full immunization probability. Multivariate logit models showed that parents who had already lost a child were significantly less likely to obtain immunization cards (a proxy for exposure to the routine immunization program), despite rising cardholdership rates over the period. Among 1,376 immunization cardholders, waiting times to full immunization fell monotonically over the period. Local program coverage of 80 per cent or higher and prior use of prenatal services both increased the probability of full immunization. However, three of five maternal occupational categories decreased the probability, as did three of six observed household risk factors. The results show that demand for routine immunizations rose over the period, that only the highest‐risk households were not exposed to the routine program, and that routine program participation partially offset negative risk factor effects on the probability of full immunization. While targeted PHC interventions may increase health production by recruiting high‐risk households into the routine PHC services, further health production increases will require more intensive follow‐up of such households through routine PHC services.     

Human fertility and land tenure in highland Bolivia

Basic demographic data of landless and landed peasants from the highlands and valley of Northern Potosi, Bolivia, are compared. Household size and crude birth rates are larger in the highlands than in the valley. Within the highland population, no statistically significant difference was observed between the age-specific fertility of landless and landed women, nor in the survivorship ratio of their offspring. The prevalence of exchange and reciprocity at the village level may be responsible for the absence of important differences in the fertility and mortality patterns of the landed and the landless. Information was obtained from a total of 333 households, which included a population of about 1700 people or 20% of the Jukumani ayllu (ethnic group). No relationship between altitude and human reproduction was noted among Jukumanis. Highland Jukumani women begin reproducing in their late teens; by their mid-20s only about 30% of the 21-25 year old female cohort remains childless. 2 major tax categories of people emerge in the area under consideration: taseros, the landed peasantry who are obligated to pay taxes, and kantu runas, the landless laborers who do not pay taxes. Tasero women are most fertile from their mid-20s until their mid-30s whild kantu runa women are more fertile later in life. Within the highland territory there are no statistically significant differences in the infant and child mortality patterns of taseros and kantu runas. The higher household size and crude birth rates of highlanders suggests that hypoxic stress may not depress fertility. Taseros and kantu runas differ in fertility patterns in degree rather than in kind. It is concluded that although differential access to natural resources may translate into slightly higher crude birth rates and child/woman ratios, it does not have much bearing on the fertility of women, or the mortality or household size of taxpayers and kantu runas. A possible explanation for the Jukumani anomaly may be the prevalence of reciprocity and exchange between taseros and kantu runas, especially relating to land access and physical care.     

Age at first birth and family size: Evidence from a longitudinal study

Abstract

This paper examines the correlates of the relationship of age at first birth to completed parity, using data from a fifteen‐year longitudinal study. Particular emphasis is given to measures of orientation toward family roles which have been singled out in previous studies as a likely causal factor not yet examined. Women who had an early first birth went on to have larger families than women who postponed childbearing longer. Demographic factors, including premarital pregnancies, unwanted births, and fecundity differentials, did not appear to account for the observed relationship. The hypothesis that early socialization toward traditional female roles might account for the higher fertility of women who began childbearing early was not confirmed. Women with a first birth at a young age were not characterized by more traditional sex‐role behavior or attitudes nor did they express higher initial fertility preferences. They did more often increase their fertility preferences over the inter‐survey period.     

Infant mortality and intra‐household competition in the Northern Islands of Orkney,Scotland, 1855–2001

This study applies principles from the theory of household life cycles to the study of early childhood mortality in the population of the Northern Orkney Islands, Scotland. The primary hypothesis is that unfavorable household economic conditions resulting from changes in household demographic composition increase the risk of death for children under the age of 5 years because of limited resources and intra‐household competition. We apply Cox proportional hazards models to nearly 5,000 linked birth and death records from the Northern Orkney Islands, Scotland, from the period 1855 to 2001. The dependent variable is the child's risk of death before age 5. Findings suggest that children in households with unfavorable age compositions face higher risk of death. This elevated risk of death continues once heterogeneity among children, islands, and households is controlled. Results also show differential risk of death for male children, children of higher birth orders, and twin births. The analyses present evidence for intra‐household competition in this historic setting. The most convincing evidence of competition is found in the effects of household consumer/producer ratios and twinning on child mortality risks. Am J Phys Anthropol 151:191–201, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Environment,livelihood and household: The ethno‐history of Rana Tharus Badaghar households

This paper focuses on the changes occurring in households in the indigenous Rana Tharus community. I discuss the household not in terms of physical structure but instead on the social aspects: how people relate to each other through the lens of the household context. I argue that the fluid nature of households makes its flexible to different ecological environments and socio‐economic scenarios. My ethnography of Rana households clearly illustrated that the formation, structure and management of Rana households was fundamentally linked to people's livelihoods. Before 1950s, abundant land resources allowed Ranas to live in joint‐type households. This particular household arrangement not only fulfilled labour needs but also secured the mutual security for every household member. Gradually, undivided and big households (known in Rana as Badaghar) became the ideal model for Ranas as soon as such establishments did not become divided or separated. This household structure also served as an important safety net for most Ranas and fundamental to other social relationships especially Mukhiya (household head system) and Kurmaa (patrilineal kin). However, since the 1950s, new socio‐economic landscapes have significantly challenged the maintenance of traditional Rana households. Within the lifetime of most Ranas, they first experienced household fission and the disappearance of the Mukhiya system. The dynamic relationships between Rana household and new ecological, social and economic landscapes are explored here. It is concluded that the household is a critical institution allowing anthropologists to better understand the long‐term social impacts caused by state policies and ecological changes. This is because people often practice their new household relations in their everyday life as a response to environmental and livelihood changes.     

The prospects for genetic improvement

Abstract

Recent versions of the economic theory of fertility have attempted to make the framework more generally applicable to all types of populations through an explicit treatment of supply considerations in combination with an analysis of the determinants of demand. Easterlin has suggested that the supply of children to an individual couple is determined by biological constraints in combination with the Davis‐Blake intermediate variables and with mortality patterns. However, anthropological studies of household structure, fertility, adoption, and migration point to a broader definition of the supply of children and to a more dynamic view of the ways in which supply and demand for household members are adjusted over the life‐cycle of the household.     

典型社区家庭消费碳排放特征与影响因素——以北京市为例

家庭消费碳排放是中国碳排放总量的重要组成部分,已成为碳排放增长的主要驱动力,从消费角度研究家庭碳排量特征及影响因素对家庭碳减排和低碳社区建设有重要意义。使用碳排放系数法和消费者生活方式法计算北京市5种典型社区家庭消费月均碳排量,通过最优尺度回归和多重比较分析对不同社区家庭碳排放影响因素进行探究。研究发现：北京市5种社区户均碳排放总量及构成差异显著,影响因素不一致。其中：（1）平房类社区家庭直接碳排量732.26 kgCO₂/月高于其他社区,燃煤取暖是平房社区家庭直接碳排放高的主要因素,单位社区、政策性住房社区和商品房社区家庭直接碳排量较低,约50.00 kgCO₂/月。家庭类型显著影响每个社区家庭直接碳排量,家庭积极参与节能环保活动有利于减少家庭直接碳排放;（2）商品房社区家庭间接碳排量最高,达3879.06 kgCO₂/月,平房类社区家庭最低,间接碳排量仅为商品房社区的1/3,间接碳排放是家庭生活消费碳排放的主体。食品和居住消费产生的间接碳排量较高,老龄化社区家庭医疗保健消费碳排量更高;（3）家庭类型和月总收入对所有社区家庭间接碳排量影响显著,但社区环保工作满意度、社区环境满意度、家庭节能环保活动参与度、耐用品使用年限等因素影响程度存在差异,胡同社区和平房类社区中受教育水平高的家庭产生的间接碳排量更高,需积极灌输环保理念。进一步分析了主要影响因素在不同水平下对应的家庭碳排量差异程度与变化规律,有助于社区管理者识别高碳排家庭,为社区低碳管理提供新思路。     

The estimation of natural fertility: A micro approach

Abstract

The estimation of natural fertility has heretofore been confined to population aggregates. This paper presents a technique for estimating natural fertility at the household level for developing countries with some practice of deliberate family size limitation and applies it to micro‐level WFS data for Sri Lanka and Colombia for females aged 35–44 in intact marriages. The technique is based on a proximate determinants equation estimated as part of a model that takes account of the interdependence between use of fertility control and natural fertility. To evaluate the results, the mean and household level estimates of natural fertility for each country are first compared with actual fertility; then mean estimates for each country are compared with macro‐level estimates of natural fertility based on three other methods. Finally, the implications of the analysis for the proximate sources of intercountry and intracountry variations in natural fertility are examined. The results suggest that the present approach yields plausible quantitative estimates of natural fertility and reasonable analytical results.     

Property,Power, and the Political Economy of Farming Households in Costa Rica

The relationship between size of landholdings and household economic status is fairly clear, particularly in societies where agricultural exports dominate the economy. Less clear is the effect of differential access to and control of productive property within households and the ways in which it affects the economic opportunities of individual household members. This paper examines property holdings and inheritance patterns among coffeeproducing households in Costa Rica. I show that while cultural norms regulatin g labor contributions do affect the balance of authority within households, de facto property rights can significantly enhance an individual's decision-making power both within households and between generationally-related households. Unless new opportunities arise, as population increases, coffee production expands, and lands become increasingly scarce, we shall likely see increased stratification both within households—as women inherit less land—and among households, as some sons inherit at the expense of other sons and daughters.     

Income differences in COVID-19 incidence and severity in Finland among people with foreign and native background: A population-based cohort study of individuals nested within households

BackgroundAlthough intrahousehold transmission is a key source of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) infections, studies to date have not analysed socioeconomic risk factors on the household level or household clustering of severe COVID-19. We quantify household income differences and household clustering of COVID-19 incidence and severity.Methods and findingsWe used register-based cohort data with individual-level linkage across various administrative registers for the total Finnish population living in working-age private households (N = 4,315,342). Incident COVID-19 cases (N = 38,467) were identified from the National Infectious Diseases Register from 1 July 2020 to 22 February 2021. Severe cases (N = 625) were defined as having at least 3 consecutive days of inpatient care with a COVID-19 diagnosis and identified from the Care Register for Health Care between 1 July 2020 and 31 December 2020. We used 2-level logistic regression with individuals nested within households to estimate COVID-19 incidence and case severity among those infected.Adjusted for age, sex, and regional characteristics, the incidence of COVID-19 was higher (odds ratio [OR] 1.67, 95% CI 1.58 to 1.77, p < 0.001, 28.4% of infections) among individuals in the lowest household income quintile than among those in the highest quintile (18.9%). The difference attenuated (OR 1.23, 1.16 to 1.30, p < 0.001) when controlling for foreign background but not when controlling for other household-level risk factors. In fact, we found a clear income gradient in incidence only among people with foreign background but none among those with native background. The odds of severe illness among those infected were also higher in the lowest income quintile (OR 1.97, 1.52 to 2.56, p < 0.001, 28.0% versus 21.6% in the highest quintile), but this difference was fully attenuated (OR 1.08, 0.77 to 1.52, p = 0.64) when controlling for other individual-level risk factors—comorbidities, occupational status, and foreign background. Both incidence and severity were strongly clustered within households: Around 77% of the variation in incidence and 20% in severity were attributable to differences between households. The main limitation of our study was that the test uptake for COVID-19 may have differed between population subgroups.ConclusionsLow household income appears to be a strong risk factor for both COVID-19 incidence and case severity, but the income differences are largely driven by having foreign background. The strong household clustering of incidence and severity highlights the importance of household context in the prevention and mitigation of COVID-19 outcomes.

Sanni Saarinen and colleagues explore the association between income differences and COVID-19 incidence and severity among people with foreign and native background in Finland.     

Selection intensities in menopausal and permanent contraceptor women of a rural population in India

Abstract

The opportunity for selection was estimated in the rural population of Visakhapat‐nam District, Andhra Pradesh, India. The index of total selection was found to be low. Selection in relation to birth control reveals that opportunity for selection is lower among the women who completed their fertility by family planning methods than in women who completed their fertility by attaining menopause. Further, the results showed that differential fertility and mortality make equal contributions to the total measure of selection in both groups.     

Dietary Patterns and Household Food Insecurity in Rural Populations of Kilosa District,Tanzania

IntroductionFew studies have investigated the relationship between dietary pattern and household food insecurity. The objective of the present analysis was to describe the food consumption patterns and to relate these with the prevalence of food insecurity in the context of a rural community.MethodologyThree hundred and seven (307) randomly selected households in Kilosa district participated in the study. Data were collected during the rainy season (February–May) and post harvest season (September–October) in the year 2011. Food consumption pattern was determined using a 24-h dietary recall method. Food insecurity data were based on the 30 day recall experience to food insecurity in the household. Factor analysis method using Principal Components extraction function was used to derive the dietary patterns and correlation analysis was used to establish the existing relationship between household food insecurity and dietary patterns factor score.ResultsFour food consumption patterns namely (I) Meat and milk; (II) Pulses, legumes, nuts and cooking oils; (III) fish (and other sea foods), roots and tubers; (IV) Cereals, vegetables and fruits consumption patterns were identified during harvest season. Dietary patterns identified during the rainy season were as follows: (I) Fruits, cooking oils, fats, roots and tubers (II) Eggs, meat, milk and milk products (III) Fish, other sea foods, vegetables, roots and tubers and (IV) Pulses, legumes, nuts, cereals and vegetables. Household food insecurity was 80% and 69% during rainy and harvest–seasons, respectively (P = 0.01). Household food insecurity access scale score was negatively correlated with the factor scores on household dietary diversity.ConclusionFood consumption patterns and food insecurity varied by seasons with worst scenarios most prevalent during the rainy season. The risk for inadequate dietary diversity was higher among food insecure households compared to food secure households. Effort geared at alleviating household food insecurity could contribute to consumption of a wide range of food items at the household level.     

Clinical implications of genetic susceptibility to diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Relatively little attention has been given to the interpretation of age‐at‐marriage differences in fertility. This paper discusses possible demographic and sociological sources of this differential. The argument is made that sociological interpretations deserve increased attention since most of the observed differential persists after control for likely demographic components (premarital pregnancy, unwanted fertility, and subfecundity) and for correlated social and background variables (education of self and parents, religion, farm background, number of siblings, whether respondent's parental family was intact, and husband's age at marriage). Multiple‐classification analysis is employed. The analysis concludes by noting that age at first birth has an even stronger relationship with fertility than age at marriage and that the sociological dimensions of age relevant to age at marriage are even more appropriate to age at entrance into motherhood.