Planning to have a child: a socially conditioned decision? – Evidence from the European Social Survey (Round 2)

In a demographic situation characterized by exceptionally low period fertility levels, can we say that the social background of individuals is crucial for the planning of their future childbearing? In what way does it interfere in the shape of the expected fertility trend? Facing a very low fertility level in the last decades, the European Southern Countries, particularly Spain and Portugal, belong to the group that presents the lowest-low fertility, according to the terminology adopted by Kohler, Billari and Ortega (2002). We believe that both the future level of period fertility and its evolutionary trend will be related to the manner the future parents (mothers and fathers) will face their fertility decision. That decision making in the forthcoming times could be associated with some specific behaviour patterns, socially differentiated, according to age, educational level, marital status and level of participation in the labour market. Assuming that values, attitude