The recent article, “Americans Are Having Fewer Babies. They Told Us Why,” discusses a new survey conducted by Morning Consult for The New York Times. It reports on survey results regarding why “young adults are having fewer children than their ideal number” as well as why they aren’t sure and why they don’t want them at all. Let’s take a brief look at the ‘aren’t sure’ and ‘don’t want them’ group of respondents. Continue reading “On a Recent Morning Consult and New York Times Survey on Having/Not Having Children”
My Take
World Population Day, 2018
Today is World Population Day 2018; it’s an annual event observed on July 11, and was founded to raise awareness of global population issues. The event was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989. It was inspired by the public interest in Five Billion Day on July 11, 1987, approximately the date on which the world’s population reached five billion people.” The Population Clock shows the world population increases in real time-the last I looked it was: Continue reading “World Population Day, 2018”
A Long-Range Glance at Rates of Childlessness
Pew Research Center has some hot off the press fertility statistics. In addition to figures relating to motherhood postponement and average numbers of children, the data include “rates of childlessness” from many countries. The reported numbers inspired me to review statistics from the past to get a feel for more of a longer range picture. Continue reading “A Long-Range Glance at Rates of Childlessness”
Procreative Ethics, Pronatalism, and the Childfree Choice
I sure love that we are seeing more pieces like this one: “Would you give up having children to save the planet? Meet the couples who have.” While all people don’t “give up” having children, I do like that it discusses the larger picture of bringing another biological child into the world. Continue reading “Procreative Ethics, Pronatalism, and the Childfree Choice”
Taking a Deeper Look at “Baby Fever”
Seeing the piece, “Baby Fever in Your 20s? Here’s What Experts Say That Means” sparked my interest in looking into research on what’s referred to as “baby fever.” Let’s take a look. Continue reading “Taking a Deeper Look at “Baby Fever””
On RBG, and a Final Frontier for Equal Treatment
The new documentary on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, RBG, is a must-see. As The Economist piece, “How Ruth Bader Ginsburg became a trailblazer for gender equality” summarizes, this film gives us a real feel for how “Ms. Ginsburg built America’s gender equality standards brick by brick,” and “the quieter parts of this remarkable justice’s life.” Continue reading “On RBG, and a Final Frontier for Equal Treatment”
Making Workplace Flexibility Policies Fair For All
The recent article, “How Managers Can Be Fair About Flexibility for Parents and Non-Parents Alike,” by Joan C. Williams and Marina Multhaup takes on two topics more commonly written about separately: how parents and non-parents face bias at work. Continue reading “Making Workplace Flexibility Policies Fair For All”
The Closing of Toys “R” Us: Due to Decline in Birthrates?
With the announcement of the closing of Toys “R” Us, we’ve seen a few articles discussing one particular reason it went bankrupt and out of business: decline in birth rates. Let’s examine this claim. Continue reading “The Closing of Toys “R” Us: Due to Decline in Birthrates?”
Understanding the “Whole of Women’s Reproductive Lives”
Pew Research Center recently came out with an interesting report on the numbers of women having children. Based primarily on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s June Supplement of the Current Population Survey, Pew Research Center collected “completed fertility” data on “…women who are now 40 to 44 who have had a baby.” The data reflect “what [women] actually did, not what they were projected to do.” Here’s some of what it found: Continue reading “Understanding the “Whole of Women’s Reproductive Lives””
Advice on the “To Baby or Not to Baby” Question
A recent “Ask Polly” on The Cut shocked me. A woman writes in with the question, “Should I have a baby?” and even though Polly assures readers the “column is not a parody,” I admit I read the response more than once to be sure her advice actually seemed serious. Continue reading “Advice on the “To Baby or Not to Baby” Question”
