Preference for children and subsequent fertility in Matlab: does wife-husband agreement matter

Abstract

This study examines wife-husband preference for children and subsequent fertility for a period of 5 years in the treatment and comparison areas of Matlab, Bangladesh. The two data sets used were: the In-depth Survey (1984) and the Demographic Surveillance System (1984-89). In the case of wives' preferences for children, subsequent childbearing was 13.8% higher than desired in the treatment area and 44.7% higher than desired in the comparison area. After controlling for all variables in the model, the likelihood of giving birth was 1.78 times higher for wives who wanted no more children, but whose husbands did want more, compared with couples where neither husband nor wife wanted more children. For couples where the wife wanted more, but the husband did not want more children, the likelihood of giving birth was 0.63 times that of couples where both the husband and wife wanted more children. This finding suggests that to enhance the decline in fertility in these two areas of Matlab, it will be necessary to motivate both wives and husbands to cease childbearing.

PIP: This study examined the effect of differences between husbands and wives desire for children and subsequent childbearing (SC) in the treatment and comparison areas of Bangladesh. Data were obtained from the 1984 In-Depth Survey (IDS) and the 1984-89 Demographic Surveillance System. The data subset excluded women who were unmarried, aged over 45 years, pregnant, or had out-migrated or died. Analysis was bivariate and multivariate. This study did not account for husbands or wives that genuinely change their minds about SC. 50.1% of wives wanted more children in the treatment area; 57.0% had SC. 41.8% in the comparison area wanted more children; 60.5% had SC. Among wives who wanted more children, 20.1% in the treatment area and 15.8% in the comparison area did not have SC. Among women who did not want more children, 34.1% and 43.5%, respectively, had SC. When SC was limited to 3 years of follow-up, SC was 14.9% lower than desired in the treatment area, rather than 14.1% higher in the 5-year follow-up, and 12.2% higher than desired in the comparison area (44.9% higher in the 5-year follow-up). When both husband and wife wanted more children, or if the husband's desires were unknown, SC was higher in both areas. If both the husband and wife wanted no more children, or if the wife wanted no more and husband's desire was unknown, SC was lower. Multivariate findings reveal that husband's agreement with the wife was related to SC. When the husband wanted more and the wife did not, the odds of SC were 1.8 times that of couples who did not want more. Muslims had higher SC; treatment areas had lower SC