- Feb 5, 2002
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‘Hannah’s Children’ offers a glimpse into countercultural women having five babies — or more.
Populations are collapsing globally. The total fertility rate (TFR) during a woman’s childbearing years has declined by more than 50% over the past 70 years, from around five children for each female in 1950 to 2.2 children in 2021, with more than half of all countries and territories (110 of 204) below 2.1 births.
According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, in the U.S., since 2007, the total fertility rate has declined from 2.12, which is just above the replacement level set by demographic tradition at 2.10 births per woman, to 1.67 in 2022, leading many to speculate that our country has entered a sustained period of what is considered below-replacement fertility.
This situation captured the attention of Catherine Pakaluk, Ph.D., director of social research and associate professor at The Catholic University of America.
“Growing up, I heard people complaining that the world would be overpopulated, but in the last 25 years, it has become clear that we don’t have enough children,” she told the Register. “When a country is shrinking, economic output shrinks along with family sizes. Most sociologists and economists around the world are studying the reasons why people won’t or can’t have children. I thought that I could add to the conversation by talking to those who are having children.”
Continued below.
www.ncregister.com
Populations are collapsing globally. The total fertility rate (TFR) during a woman’s childbearing years has declined by more than 50% over the past 70 years, from around five children for each female in 1950 to 2.2 children in 2021, with more than half of all countries and territories (110 of 204) below 2.1 births.
According to the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, in the U.S., since 2007, the total fertility rate has declined from 2.12, which is just above the replacement level set by demographic tradition at 2.10 births per woman, to 1.67 in 2022, leading many to speculate that our country has entered a sustained period of what is considered below-replacement fertility.
This situation captured the attention of Catherine Pakaluk, Ph.D., director of social research and associate professor at The Catholic University of America.
“Growing up, I heard people complaining that the world would be overpopulated, but in the last 25 years, it has become clear that we don’t have enough children,” she told the Register. “When a country is shrinking, economic output shrinks along with family sizes. Most sociologists and economists around the world are studying the reasons why people won’t or can’t have children. I thought that I could add to the conversation by talking to those who are having children.”
Continued below.
Meet the Women Defying the ‘Birth Dearth’
‘Hannah’s Children’ offers a glimpse into countercultural women having five babies — or more.
