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International Journal of
Population Studies A theoretical review of childlessness

Figure 1. Proposition of general pathways to childlessness (using the main types and concepts of childlessness). Source: Author’s own elaboration.
5. Concluding remarks Section 4, by presenting and discussing important types
of childlessness, proposes a general framework of pathways
This study aimed to analyze theoretically a set of important to childlessness. The distinctions between temporary versus
and recurrent issues discussed in the literature on permanent and voluntary versus involuntary childlessness
childlessness. In the absence of a theoretical background were critical to the development of this framework. Four
developed specifically to explain childlessness, Section different pathways were proposed. The first one points to a
2 contributes by providing an overview of different scenario in which involuntary childlessness was present from
aspects and theoretical approaches that, to some level, the beginning, due to several reasons, for example, sterility,
relate to childlessness and help explain this non-event. It failed treatment of infertility, or financial difficulties. In this
showed that in addition to some biological explanations, case, there is no reversal from temporary to permanent
socioeconomic advances catalyzed by a continuous childlessness. In the second scenario, involuntary
process of globalization contribute, to a great extent, childlessness is a consequence of continuous fertility
to explaining childlessness, especially its current rising postponement; therefore, there is a reversal from temporary
trend in developed countries. Table 1 compiles all the to permanent childlessness. The third one describes a general
explanations, not only these contexts and aspects but also setting in which voluntary childlessness was a characteristic
the theoretical approaches. Some of the aspects discussed, from earlier ages; consequently, there is no reversal from
such as greater participation of women in the labor market, temporary to permanent childlessness. Finally, voluntary
increasing education and salaries, higher cohabitation, childlessness at older ages as a consequence of events taking
individualism, and secularization, are closely correlated to place during the life course, which points to a reversal from
the explanations provided by some theoretical approaches, temporary to permanent childlessness.
especially, the Rational Choice Theory, the Second
Demographic Transition, and the Preference Theory. As emphasized, the number of studies discussing
childlessness theoretically is low, and, different from the theories
Section 3 presented the association between childlessness developed to explain the fertility transition, it lacks a theoretical
and important (and recurrent) sociodemographic framework exclusively and consistently devoted to discussing
variables. This section contributes by particularly showing childlessness. Therefore, by discussing this series of subjects,
how the literature has been documenting that childlessness this work contributes to the ongoing process of establishing
prevails between the higher educated; the ones who have a theoretical framework for childlessness. As a consequence,
never been partnered; the African American and urbanized while it raises different approaches to studying childlessness,
women; and the subgroups without a religious affiliation or it also contributes by encouraging further research on this
with lower religious attendance. topic, particularly considering projections that indicate a future

Volume 7 Issue 2 (2021) 10 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.v7i2.352