Childlessness, Voluntary

Family scholars studying voluntary childlessness have increasingly focused on how to define the empirical boundaries of the childfree, attitudes toward voluntary childlessness, reasons behind remaining childless, and consequences of childlessness at older age. The available evidence suggests an increasing prevalence of voluntary childlessness with somewhat greater societal acceptance in the United States than in previous eras. Certain demographic characteristics (being a man, highly educated, and white) are consistently associated with higher likelihood of remaining voluntarily childless. A considerable number of studies have used the life course perspective as a theoretical tool in explaining childlessness. The dearth of empirical studies indicates a growing need to incorporate men\u27s experiences into this line of research