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Race and Childlessness in America, 1988–2002
Author(s) -
Lundquist Jennifer Hickes,
Budig Michelle J.,
Curtis Anna
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of marriage and family
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.578
H-Index - 159
eISSN - 1741-3737
pISSN - 0022-2445
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-3737.2009.00630.x
Subject(s) - childlessness , national survey of family growth , fertility , race (biology) , educational attainment , demography , marital status , white (mutation) , psychology , population , sociology , family planning , gender studies , research methodology , economics , economic growth , biology , biochemistry , gene
This paper bridges the literature on childlessness, which often focuses on married White couples, to the literature on race and fertility, which often focuses on why total fertility rates and nonmarital births are higher for Blacks than Whites. Despite similarity in levels of childlessness among Black women and White women, Black trends have been largely ignored. Recent research has not adequately explored the extent to which factors driving childlessness may vary among Black and White women. We attempted to fill this gap using the National Survey of Family Growth (N = 3,628) and found many similarities in the predictors of childlessness for both races. Exceptions were the role of marital status and educational attainment.