While much research has been done on why people delay having children in low fertility countries, it is not yet well understood what helps or hinders people to have children later in life (in their 30s and 40s).
(1) Later reproductive age is very specific, with a rapid decline in reproductive capacity from the mid-30s and a steeper decline in the 40s. This means that as an increasing proportion of the population wishes to have children later, more and more people will potentially face a biological constraint on their childbearing prospects. For this reason, the project examines reproductive experiences at different ages, including the increase in biological limits with age and the resulting increase in the use of medically assisted reproduction (MAR).
(2) People who have delayed childbearing are at a different stage in their lives than those who have children earlier. For example, they will have worked longer, they may already have had more than one partner, their health may be declining, or their parents may be at an age when they need more care and support. Accordingly, we explore the reproductive experiences of those who have their first child in their 30s or later, how individual circumstances seem to unfold to make birth possible, and the fine line between delaying and foregoing childbearing.
(3) The context of fertility at later ages differs from that at earlier ages. People may perceive pressures around reproductive timing that make them want to have children faster or not at all. To better understand perceptions of late fertility, we examine laws and attitudes around the age of childbearing or the use of MAR. We then link the normative and economic environment, as well as markers of gender balance, to late fertility.
(4) Finally, the observed reproductive age limits (which combine biological, technological and normative aspects) may discourage people from having children, but there is little evidence on the extent to which delaying the first child leads to lower fertility levels. We explore this issue by linking reproductive age limits to completed fertility, and by examining the experience of infertility as a vector for having a smaller family than intended.
The project will improve the understanding of the main drivers of fertility at later ages across Europe in times of later family formation. It contributes to the development of an important area of research at the interface between demography and epidemiology.
