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International Journal of
Population Studies Low fertility intentions in China

societal (macro) levels. Table 1 summarizes the factors Table 1. Factors related to fertility intentions found in
found in the literature. literature
Research on fertility intentions identifies various factors Level Category Description
that span economic, educational, psychological, and Micro Demographic Reproductive age, possession of certain
social domains. Among these, economic insecurity and factors hukou, marital status, and educational
employment uncertainty have consistently been shown attainment.
to delay parenthood (Gatta et al., 2022), especially during Psychological Motivational needs for procreation, life
volatile job markets and economic downturns, as observed factors satisfaction, work pressure, envy of other
in Fiori et al. (2018). The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated people’s second child.
these trends, significantly reducing fertility intentions Interpersonal Marital relationships, the division of
across many populations (Peng et al., 2023). Vignoli and relationships household responsibilities, partners’
factors
educational pairings, partners’ family types
Rinesi (2014) highlight that people’s narratives about their (e.g., one-child family), work-family balance,
futures in uncertain socioeconomic environments lead to parental support in childcare, parental
hesitancy in family planning. financial help, and in-law relationships.
Economic factors are not only objective but also shaped Socioeconomic Personal and household income, housing
factors
property, employment status, work stability,
by subjective perceptions. For example, Chinese parents are job title, impact of childbirth on women’s
concerned about their ability to provide sufficient resources careers, cost of raising children, or childcare.
for their children, given the intense social competition, which Biological and Impact of underlying genetic predispositions,
leads to lower fertility intentions (Xu & Pak, 2021). When medical factors biological age factors, physical health,
families perceive limited resources, they often prioritize the objective and subjective birth experiences,
quality of upbringing over the number of children, resulting mode of delivery.
in smaller family sizes (Becker & Lewis, 1973). Subjective Ideal number of children, sex of the first
parenting child, age of the first child, attitude of the
Contradictions exist regarding the relationship between perceptions first child and parents toward the second
income and fertility intentions. While some research child, wishes to continue the family line,
indicates a positive correlation between rising income social competition of child-raising.
and fertility intentions (Tian et al., 2017), other studies Meso Community Place-of-residence factors,
find that higher incomes are associated with lower fertility factors place-of-occupation.
intentions as career priorities take precedence (Wang & Social capital Financial support and supportive social
Luo, 2021). This pattern suggests that lifestyle choices, factors networks.
such as personal freedom, might overshadow economic Macro Macro Recession, COVID-19 pandemic, fertility
concerns as income increases. socioeconomic costs and benefits.
factors
Educational attainment also plays a significant role in Policy factors Family planning policies, workplace
delaying childbearing, as higher education is often linked policies, public expenditure, awareness
to career-focused decisions (He & Lin, 2021). However, of the universal two-child policy, public
evidence varies across contexts. Testa (2018) found medical and pension insurance, and state of
supervision of childcare institutions.
that in certain countries, higher education levels do not Sociological Cultural and social values, gender
necessarily correlate with fewer children, indicating the and ideological egalitarianism, gender role attitudes,
need for further research on the educational gradient in factors nationalism, and religious belief.
fertility intentions. Environmental Air pollution.
Work-family conflict is another well-documented factor
factor affecting fertility intentions. Jiang et al. (2022) found Note: Hukou describes a Chinese household registration system that
that the stress and anxiety from balancing work and family is passed down from one’s parents and can be altered depending
on a number of factors, including income, education, and property
life contribute to lower fertility intentions, particularly ownership, which can have an effect on a person’s financial situation.
for women in high-pressure environments. Yang et al.
(2023) emphasized that women in China’s first-tier cities
experience significant work demands, reducing their Other factors influencing fertility intentions include
likelihood of having a second child. However, other studies, marital quality and birth experiences. Research shows
such as Liu & Hynes (2012), found minimal evidence that that poor marital quality reduces the likelihood of
work-family conflict directly reduces fertility intentions, expanding families (Gawrych et al., 2021), while
suggesting resilience as a potential moderating factor. traumatic birth experiences deter future pregnancies

Volume 11 Issue 3 (2025) 71 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.5124