Social and biological determinants of age at first marriage in Taiwan, 1970

This study examines the social and biological determinants of age at first marriage in 2 townships in Northern Taiwan, one very rural and traditional and the other urban and modernized. Using a sample of 5707 once-married women, a path analysis examined age at first marriage as a function of age, educational status, urban origin, premarital labor force participation, and age at menarche. Age at menarche, with a positive effect on the dependent variable, was the most important direct cause of age at first marriage. This biological factor is interrelated with socioeconomic influences as predictors of age at marriage. Older cohorts of women tended to marry about 2 years earlier than did the women below 30. Urban women had a mean age at first marriage 1.76 year later than did rural women. Age at marriage steadily increases as education increases; a 4 year age differntial exists between those who have no formal education and those who have at least 12 years of education. Also, women who worked before marriage married later than those who had never worked. This study reemphasizes that in Taiwan, as elsewhere, there is a complex interplay of socioeconomic and biological factors embedded within a cultural context that influences age at first marriage for females.     

HIV status and age at first marriage among women in Cameroon

Recent research has highlighted the risk of HIV infection for married teenage women compared with their unmarried counterparts (Clark, 2004). This study assesses whether a relationship exists, for women who have completed their adolescence (age 20-29 years), between HIV status with age at first marriage and the length of time between first sex and first marriage. Multivariate analysis utilizing the nationally representative 2004 Cameroon Demographic and Health Survey shows that late-marrying women and those with a longer period of pre-marital sex have the highest risk of HIV. Although women in urban areas overall marry later than their rural counterparts, the positive relationship between age at marriage and HIV risk is stronger in rural areas. The higher wealth status and greater number of lifetime sexual partners of late-marrying women contribute to their higher HIV risk. Given that the age at first marriage and the gap between first marriage and first sex have increased in recent years, focusing preventive efforts on late-marrying women will be of much importance in reducing HIV prevalence among females.     

Socioeconomic determinants of age at first marriage in Bangladesh

Using data from the 1976 Bangladesh Fertility Survey, multiple classification analysis was used to evaluate the effect of socioeconomic factors on age at 1st marriage. The independent variables considered were education, childhood and current residence, religion, work status before marriage, and husband's childhood residence, education, and occupation. Analysis was carried out for the total sample as well as for 3 birth cohorts of approximately equal size: 1) those born before 1940, 2) those born between 1940-50, and 3) those born after 1950. Of all the included variables, women's education has the strongest influence on the variation of age at 1st marriage. For all ever-married women, the mean age at marriage for women with primary education is 13.4 years, 0.9 years higher than for women with no education (12.5 years), and 1.2 years lower than for women with a high school education or beyond (14.6 years). Difference in means for cohorts indicate a gradually increasing influence of education on people's decision in marriage. Husband's education does not appear to be as important. Childhood residence has, directly and indirectly, a strong influence in marriage age. Among other factors, women's premarital work participation, as well as region and husband's occupation, are important. Since women's education, childhood residence, and work participation are the strongest socioeconomic variables affecting marriage age, the modernizing influences of education, urbanization, and female work participation should have an effect on the marriage pattern; this effect is consistent with that observed in other societies.     

Divorce in Ethiopia: the impact of early marriage and childlessness

Forty-five per cent of first marriages in Ethiopia end in divorce within 30 years, and two-thirds of women who divorce do so within the first 5 years of marriage. This paper looks at two factors that may have an impact on the risk of divorce in Ethiopia: early age of first marriage, and childlessness within the first marriage. Data used were from the 1990 National Family and Fertility Survey conducted by the Government of Ethiopia. A total of 8757 women of reproductive age (15-49) were analysed. Life table analysis was used to determine the median age at first marriage, first birth and the median duration of marriage. Cox models were analysed to determine the differentials of divorce. The results of this analysis showed that both early age at marriage and childlessness have a significant impact on the risk of divorce. An inverse relationship was found between age at marriage and risk of divorce. Having a child within the first marriage also significantly reduced the risk of divorce. In addition, several cultural and socioeconomic variables were significant predictors of divorce.     

Social-demographic influence on first birth interval in China, 1980-1992

This study examines the delay between first marriage and first live birth in China among a sample of women who married between 1980 and 1992. Most couples in China only use contraception after the first child is born. Most sample women had their first child within 2 years of marriage. However, there are significant rural-urban differences in the first birth interval, indicating that there was most probably deliberate fertility regulation after marriage among many urban couples. Survival analysis shows that place of residence, level of education, age at first marriage and marriage cohort affect the first birth interval.     

Famine-related mortality in early life and accelerated life histories in nineteenth-century Belgium

Density-dependent and extrinsic mortality are predicted to accelerate reproductive maturation. The first 5 years of life is a proposed sensitive period for life-history regulation. This study examines the ways in which local mortality during this sensitive period was related to subsequent marriage timing in nineteenth-century Belgium (n women = 11 892; n men = 14 140). Local mortality during the sensitive period was inversely associated with age at first marriage for men and women controlling for literacy, occupational status, population growth and migration. Cox regression indicated decreased time to marriage for women (HR = 1.661, 95% CI: 1.542–1.789) and men (HR = 1.327, 95% CI: 1.238–1.422) from high mortality municipalities. Rising population growth rates were associated with earlier marriage for men and women. Migration in general was associated with later marriage for men and women. Consistent with life-history predictions, harsh ecological conditions during early life such as famine coincided with earlier marriage.     

Cessation of childbearing in the absence of contraception in Sri Lanka

In data from the Sri Lanka Fertility Survey, 1975, the cessation of childbearing is examined among women who have never used contraception. The sample consisted of 6810 currently or previously married women, 57% of whom reported that they had never used contraception. Cessation of childbearing is studied according to age and marriage duration. The variables analyzed are age at last birth, proportions infertile during the last 5 or 7 years, and the infertile open interval. The duration of breastfeeding is taken into account where necessary, and the contraceptive users and nonusers are compared where appropriate. Non-users tend to cease childbearing early, and therefore are infertile for longer periods during their marriages. It is probably age of the 1st child that influences decisions on future fertility. Among women aged 45-49 who married before age 20 and continued in their 1st marriage, mean age at last live birth in non-users, was 34.5 years, about 2 years earlier than in those who had used contraception. Non-users who married at any age below 30 years cease childbearing well below age 40. The proportion not currently pregnant and infertile over the past 5 years increases with marriage duration among the fertile non-users in each age group. When age at last birth and the duration of breastfeeding in the open interval are taken into account and the reference period is increased to 7 years, the period of infertility increases with marriage duration among nonpregnant non-users below age 45. The proportion of women who were currently not pregnant and had remained infertile over the past 7 years is higher among the older non-users whose 1st child was born more than 10 years ago.     

Biological and behavioral determinants of fertility in Tierra del Fuego

The reproductive history of 182 women in postreproductive life or near menopause from the Chilean part of Tierra del Fuego was traced back by means of familial interviews. These postmenopausal women represent the population since almost the beginning of the settlement, and their reproductive years were spent on the island. Path analysis was applied to analyze fertility determinants of these women and to propose a complex model of interconnections among factors. The reproductive history of these women is characterized by a long fertile span, a short childbearing period, and low fertility. Age at menarche is relatively late, and the age of the women at first birth is mainly determined by their late age at marriage. The use of contraception is related to both spacing and stopping behaviors. The late age of women at marriage, the rhythm of conception, and practices of contraception are proposed as the main determinants of fertility in Tierra del Fuego.     

Duration between marriage and first birth and marital instability

This paper considers whether marital instability varies by the duration between marriage and 1st birth among ever-married white and black American women. Analysis of data from the June 1985 Current Population Survey suggests that the duration between marriage and 1st birth has a generally monotonic relationship with the probability of white women separating or divorcing from their 1st marriage; the relationship has remained relatively constant over time. For blacks, no consistent association is found between marital dissolution and the duration between marriage and 1st birth. Black women having a premarital conception and postmarital birth and those having their 1st birth during their 2nd year of marriage have a similarly high risk of dissolution. Conversely, blacks having their 1st birth 8-12 or 25-42 months after marrying have a low probability of dissolution. Childless women and those with premarital births generally has the greatest probability of marital disruption for whites. Racial differences may occur because blacks view the 1st birth and marriage differently than whites. That is, because blacks are much more likely to have premarital births and to have a shorter duration between marriage and 1st birth, blacks and whites in the same 1st birth interval category may be dissimilar and have different values resulting in a differential effect of the timing of the 1st birth on marital instability by race. Caution is needed when interpreting the pattern of association between delayed childbearing (and to a lesser extent, births occuring a few years after marriage) and marital instability. Results for whites were similar at each marriage duration and it is assumed delayed childbearing was not a result of marital instability. Marital instability was expected to have its strongest effect on the timing of the 1st birth during the 1st years of marriage. Marital instability may be partially responsible for the delaying of childbearing among blacks. However, blacks who delay but are married at 1st birth have a relatively low risk of separating or divorcing.     

Reproductive life of some Gujar women of Punjab

Data was collected on current age, age at menarche, marriage age, maternal age at 1st birth, age at the birth of last child, age at menopause, total number of conceptions, live births, stillbirths, abortions, dead children and living children for a sample of 150 Gunjar women of Punjab, India, during September and October 1977 to study their reproductive life. The women ranged in age from 45-55 years. The mean age at menarche was 14.90 years for the sample. The median age at menopause was 46.20 years. The mean age at marriage of the present sample was 12.56+-2.50 years; the mean age of the mother at the birth of her 1st child was 16.85 years; and the mean age at the birth of the last child was 38.68 years. The average number of conceptions was 7.2; the average number of live births of these 150 women was 6.90. The fertility of this population was natural as they were not using any family planning method.     

Marital fertility in polygynous unions in Nigeria

The effect of polygyny on fertility, by age cohort, was examined in 4 regions of Nigeria through use of data from the 1981-82 Nigerian Fertility Survey. Simple tabulation of numbers of live births by maternal age and type of marriage union indicated that, with the exception of the 30-39-year age group, fertility in polygynous unions tends to be higher than that in monogamous marriages. Overall, such tabulations reveal an average of 3.90 births among polygynous women and 3.47 births among monogamous women. However, when age-specific fertility rates were compared, except for women under 20 and over 40 years of age, rates were higher in monogamous unions (7.286 overall) than for women in polygynous households (7.200 overall). Mean completed fertility, taking into account marriage duration as well, shows a tendency for women in polygynous unions to be more fertile (with the exception of women aged 25-44 years who had been married 10-19 years). The absolute difference in fertility between the 2 types of marital unions ranged from 0.32 children in the northwest to 0.64 in the southeast. With adjustment for independent variables such as education, the absolute mean differences were reduced, from between 0.28 children in the southeast to 0.42 in the northeast, but the direction of high fertility was still in favor of women in polygynous unions. But when the covariates (e.g., age at marriage) were taken into account as well as the independent variables, there was a dramatic reduction in the mean difference between the fertility of these 2 groups of women. These findings suggest that some changes in reproductive behavior are taking place in Nigeria that are restricting the fertility of women in polygynous unions. These changes are hypothesized to reflect the spread of formal education in Nigeria, with the expectation that women will contribute to the costs involved in educating their children.     

Fertility levels, trends and differentials in Kuwait

Data used in this study come from the published reports of the censuses and vital registration systems. The crude birth rate in Kuwait is very high, although an apparent decline seems to have started in the period 1975-80. There are considerable differences between the Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti populations. The former had a relatively stable high rate around 50 until 1975 and then fell to 47 in 1980. The total fertility rate was 6.8 per woman. The rate for the non-Kuwaitis rose in 1965-70 and then fell sharply throughout 1970-1980, from 44 to 30. Non-Kuwaiti fertility is consistently lower than Kuwaiti fertility at all ages, the differences being relatively greater after age 35. The peak ages of fertility are 25-29 years for Kuwaitis and 20-29 years for non-Kuwaitis. For Kuwaitis, there is clear evidence of declining fertility in the younger age groups but not in the older, largely reflecting the trend towards later marriage among the younger Kuwaitis. As expected, there is a diminishing trend in completed family size from the least to the most educated women in both Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti women in all age groups. The illiterate women at marriage are younger than the university educated women by about 5 years. Results further show that women who are economically active have lower fertility than those who are not, both in Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti groups. The differences in each group are significant, as are differences in the fertility level by husband's occupation. High fertility in Kuwait, as well as in other oil-exporting Arab countries, is a result of a variety of factors including the generally pronatalist sentiment of the Arab population, improved health facilities, rising wealth, the youthful age structure, the young age at marriage and the substantial incentives in the different governmental schemes to promote native high fertility and keep a balance between the native and immigrant populations.     

Menarcheal age and subsequent patterns of family formation

We examine whether age at menarche affects age at first marriage or first birth using two samples of U.S. women. Data are drawn from the Tremin Trust, a longitudinal study of menstrual cycles that recruited white women who were students at the University of Minnesota and from a survey of a nationally representative sample of white women born between 1900 and 1910. Regression models with cubic splines were used to analyze the relationship between age at menarche and age at first marriage. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine the effect of age at menarche on the interval between marriage and first birth. Unlike earlier work, we found that once secular trends in both age at marriage and age at menarche were taken into account, there was no evidence that age at menarche affects either age at marriage or the timing of first births in these U.S. women.     

Socioeconomic and cultural differentials in age at marriage and the effect on fertility in Nepal

Age at marriage is one of the factors that influence the fertility behaviour of women, particularly in a society like Nepal where contraceptive use is low. Socioeconomic and cultural factors, particularly religion and ethnicity, are important variables in determining age at marriage in Nepal. Fertility was negatively related with age at marriage. Marriage duration had a greater influence on fertility than age at marriage, although these were strongly correlated.     

Continuing fertility transitions in a plural society: ethnic trends and differentials in Peninsular Malaysia

Fertility in Peninsular Malaysia has declined continuously from the late 1950s, reaching a total fertility rate of 3735 in 1983. All ethnic groups in Malaysia have contributed to this modern demographic transition but the rate of change has been most rapid for Chinese and Indians, Malay fertility having reached a plateau in the early 1980s. The effect of age structure, marital patterns and marital fertility (by parity) on the fertility declines for each ethnic community are analyzed. There has been a tendency, in each ethnic group, for the age distribution within the group of reproductive-age women to grow younger, reflecting the entry into the younger reproductive ages of the large birth cohorts of the 1950s and early 1960s. The effect of this on crude birth rates is hard to determine, because rising age at marriage and increasing use of contraception meant that fertility was increasingly concentrated in the more central reproductive ages. By the 1990s, the earlier declines in fertility will bring about a decline in the proportion of the total population made up of females in the main reproductive ages. After that point, further declines in fertility will be reflected in a sharper decline in the crude birth rate and hence the rate of population increase. Between 1947 and 1980, the age at marriage changed dramatically for females of all ethnic groups. The transition to higher age at marriage for Chinese was completed earlier, and since 1970 has risen by only a year. For Malays and Indians, the rise began later, proceeded faster and continued right up to 1980 when the medium ages at 1st marriage were Malays 22, Indians 23, Chinese 24 years. In 1980, Malay women on average were marrying 5 years later, and Indian women 6 years later than had their mothers' generation in 1947. The proportion never-married among Malay and Indian women aged 20-24 rose from 1/10 to 1/2 over this period; relatively greater changes are evident at ages 25-29. Other factors are the almost complete shift from parent-arranged to self-arranged marriages. Family size desired has decreased for all groups and the decline in breastfeeding has been offset by the sharp increase in the practice of contraception. Continuation of these trends would lead to replacement-level fertility for Malaysian Chinese and Indians by the year 2000. Malay fertility is likely to continue to decline but at a more moderate pace.     

Menarcheal age and subsequent patterns of family formation

Abstract

We examine whether age at menarche affects age at first marriage or first birth using two samples of U.S. women. Data are drawn from the Tremin Trust, a longitudinal study of menstrual cycles that recruited white women who were students at the University of Minnesota and from a survey of a nationally representative sample of white women born between 1900 and 1910. Regression models with cubic splines were used to analyze the relationship between age at menarche and age at first marriage. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine the effect of age at menarche on the interval between marriage and first birth. Unlike earlier work, we found that once secular trends in both age at marriage and age at menarche were taken into account, there was no evidence that age at menarche affects either age at marriage or the timing of first births in these U.S. women.     

Secular Trends of Reproductive Indices in Chuvashian Women

In the present cross-sectional study of the Chuvashian rural population, we examined the secular trends of age at menarche, the age at menopause, the reproductive period, and the age of the first marriage of Chuvashian women. The cohort included 745 women aged 18–90 years; age at menarche (N = 653) ranging from 10 to 24 years (mean 15.42 ± 2.11). Data regarding menopausal age was obtained from 316 women born between 1920 and 1950 (mean 48.5 ± 4.6). Statistical analyses included the maximum likelihood estimation and a Whiskers plot. Women born during the second through the fourth decade of the 20th century showed increasing mean values of age at menarche from 15.4 (second decade) up to 16.5 (fourth decade) and after that a decrease of the mean values to 14.0 (ninth decade). The mean values of menopausal age increased from 47.0 (women born from 1920 to 1925) to 49.3 (born from 1945 to 1950). Age at first marriage showed a trend of decreasing age. Our study demonstrated secular trends of age at menarche in Chuvashian women who had matured after World War II and also confirmed secular trends of increased age at menopause and the duration of the reproductive period. Women, whose maturation was during or immediately after World War II, showed a higher age at menarche and a higher dispersion of age at menopause.     

Reproduction: the Canadian family in transition

3 trends suggest that the reproductive function of the Canadian family is in transition. 1st, fertility has fallen and remains below the replacement level. In 1985, the total fertility rate was 1.67, the lowest in 60 years. Since 1971, it has not risen above 2.1 births/woman, the replacement level. 2nd, an increasing proportion of women are spending a larger part of their lives without having any children. In the 1981 census, 22% of ever-married women between 15 and 44 years had not yet borne children, compared with only 14% recorded in the 1961 census. While the proportion of women who are childless at the end of their reproductive years has risen only slightly, a larger number of women are postponing having children even as the risk of becoming sterile in the interim becomes greater. The combined effect of postponing both marriage and childbearing will most probably be to increase the proportion of women remaining without children. The 3rd trend is the increasing proportion of women who are having children without getting married. Among the consequences of premarital pregnancy are the stress on single mothers, the need for social assistance, the cost of maintenance programs, and the need for more child care. These changes in attitude toward marriage and family formation could have major implications for individuals and society. A fertility rate below replacement level could be stressful for society, resulting in population decline, and changes in age structure that could negatively affect the economy.     

Determinants of adolescent pregnancy in an urban area in Turkey: a population-based case-control study

The aim of this study was to determine the degree to which socioeconomic status is a risk factor for first birth at age 19 or younger in married women in an urban area of Turkey. The research was a population-based case-control study. The study group comprised all married and pregnant women aged 15-19 (adolescent pregnancies) attending primary care centres (144 subjects). Married women between 20 and 29 years of age, experiencing their first pregnancy (adult pregnancies), were determined as the control group (144 subjects). A questionnaire was completed for each subject during face-to-face interviews. Adolescent pregnancy was more frequent in women from families with a low socioeconomic status, as determined by occupation (class) and income; both were associated with adolescent pregnancy. Multiple logistic regression analysis identified seven factors associated with adolescent pregnancy: exposure to violence within the family prior to marriage; families partially opposed or unopposed to adolescent marriage; secondary school or lower education level; lack of social security; living in houses in which the number of persons per room was over 1; unemployed women; and having sisters with a history of adolescent pregnancy.     

Teenage childbearing: structural determinants in developing countries

Data for a sample of 50 developing countries are analysed to investigate the social correlates of the teenage birth rate. Of five major factors considered as predictors of national birth rates (socioeconomic development, family planning programmes, women's status, the sex ratio, and marriage patterns), regression analyses reveal that only the average age at marriage for women has a significant effect on the teenage birth rate. In contrast, all variables except the sex ratio and the average age at marriage for women have a significant effect on the total fertility rate.