Factors Affecting Contraceptive Use in Sub-Saharan Africa (1993) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
7 Contribution of Modern Contraceptive Use Relative to Postpartum Practices to Fertility Decline
7 Contribution of Modern Contraceptive Use Relative to Postpartum Practices to Fertility Decline
Pages 197-211
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 197... ...
In analyses of the variation in marital fertility in developing countries over the past two decades, contraceptive use has been the major determining factor in the majority of cases. Traditional postpartum practices (i.e., intermediate or proximate fertility variables including fecundity, lactational amenorrhea, and postpartum abstinence)
|
From page 198... ...
This phase is characterized by declining desired family size, increased knowledge of contraception, and subsequently increased use-effectiveness of fertility regulation. Reduced demand for children as a response to diminished child utility, increased costs of childrearing, and higher aspirations with respect to child quality are often associated with the same factors of socioeconomic development that produced the initial fertility rise (see Chapters 3 and 4~.
|
From page 199... ...
However, with possible exceptions in major urban areas among bettereducated young women, abortion would appear to be fairly limited in African populations. 4Both the World Fertility Survey and the Demographic and Health Survey use a broad definition of marriage and include women reported as "having a partner" as being in a regular sexual union.
|
From page 200... ...
These factors shape the positive relationship between female schooling levels and ages at entry into first union at the aggregate level. Regional Patterns of Postpartum Infecundability Postpartum infecundability potentially affects fertility in any society.
|
From page 201... ...
Notwithstanding the evidence of "no further erosion" in the 1980s, female education has been one of the prime factors involved in the shortening of birth intervals in sub-Saharan Africa during at least the last three decades, as demonstrated by a number of individual-level analyses (e.g., Olusanya, 1971; Caldwell and Caldwell, 1977; Page and Lesthaeghe., 1981; Mosley et al., 1982; Gaisie, 1984; Locoh, 1984; Tambashe, 1984; Mpiti and KaluleSabiti, 1985~. Thus, increased schooling levels for women have been partially responsible for the initial fertility increase during the first phase of the transition.
|
From page 203... ...
203 ~ Do ~ onUS Cal ~ ~ .
|
From page 204... ...
SOURCE: Demographic and Health Survey and World Fertility Survey reports. or inverted U-shaped relations were typical for areas in which female education acted more strongly in favor of increased natural fertility and reduced child spacing than in favor of enhanced contraception.
|
From page 205... ...
Similarly, mass education is an equally forceful agent in the reduction of infant and childhood mortality and may therefore account for much of the statistical relationship found between the pace of the early-life mortality reduction and declining fertility. CONTRACEPTION, NONSUSCEPTIBILITY, AND FERTILITY DECLINE We return to the question of the relative contribution of contraceptive use versus postpartum nonsusceptibility to fertility change.
|
From page 206... ...
In the sample of regions used here, the central African zone of high levels of infecundity is not represented. The joint degree of fertility reduction stemming from postpartum nonsusceptibility and contraception can be represented as CiCc or (log Ci + SIf no breastfeeding and postpartum abstinence are practiced, the birth interval equals about 18.5 months, including waiting time to conception, time lost due to fetal loss, and gestation, plus 1.5 months for minimal postpartum amenorrhea.
|
From page 207... ...
We therefore define the difference D as D = 1,OOO(log Ci - log Cc ~ . As D approaches zero, contraception is catching up with the effect of postpartum infecundability, and when D reaches positive values, the fertility-reducing effect of contraception outweighs that of lactational amenorrhea and postpartum abstinence.
|
From page 208... ...
SOURCE: Demographic and Health Survey and World Fertility Survey reports. relationship clearly indicates that a relatively high degree of fertility reduction can be achieved via the exclusive action of lactational amenorrhea and long periods of postpartum abstinence (regions to the left in the figure)
|
From page 209... ...
Western Ahican regions with be~er scbooling levels bave lower degrees of compens~ion via modem coDtraception, ~bereas tbe eastem and soutbem A~C&D regions witb ~mU~ schooliDg levels ~e reaching or crossing tbe break-even poiDt O.e~ = 0~. 1BE [NCER1AIN FO10= Tbe momentum of iDcreased coDtraceptive use and tbe spread of contra ceptioD to otber regions depend on a number of condidons.
|
From page 210... ...
Western African regions still benefit from a considerable postpartum abstinence bonus, but continue to score low on contraceptive knowledge, small ideal family size, and actual contraceptive use. · Female education is particularly strongly associated with reduced duration of postpartum nonsusceptibility and increased use of contraception.
|
From page 211... ...
, the future is quite uncertain with respect to the prospects for both further increases in female education and improved family plan .
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.