There has been a lack of socioeconomic status (SES) disparity analysis on women in China with only one child, the family planning target population. In 2008, the National Research Institute for Family Planning of China conducted a study investigating the relationship between SES and fertility intentions among 17,093 women in China who already had one child. A questionnaire was used to collect information on SES and fertility intentions, and logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratios and 95% CIs of fertility intentions according to SES. Compared with female farmers, women in other occupations intended to have fewer children (p < 0.05). Additionally, compared with women with low educational level (illiterate/primary), women with secondary and postsecondary education intended to have fewer children (p < 0.05) (OR = 0.70; 95% CI: 0.61-0.81 and OR = 0.56; 95% CI 0.47-0.66). A mother's education level was significantly and negatively associated with fertility intentions after adjustment for potential confounders (p < 0.05). Among Chinese women who had one child, the women with higher SES (e.g. higher educational level) had lower fertility intentions. There is an SES disparity in the fertility intention among Chinese women who already have one child. China's policy-makers should consider increasing high SES women's fertility intention.

ObjectiveInduced abortion is widely practiced in China. However, the information on induced abortion is limited. A national cross-sectional survey was designed to determine the risk factors of induced abortion among Chinese women with one child.MethodsWe sampled 16,881 Chinese women with one living child for the study. A structured questionnaire was used to collect induced abortion and related health information. The National Research Institute for Family Planning of China conducted a cross-sectional study among women who had delivered a baby between 2006 and 2008. Information was collected in relation to demographic characteristics (age, ethnicity, region, area etc.), social economic status (education level and occupation), marriage, and the attitude towards potential child’s gender. Multi-logistic regression was used to test potential predictors for conducting abortion stratified by consistency between gender preference and current infants’ gender, and indicating adjusted estimation on selected models of risk factors for abortion.ResultsThe mean age of participants was 27.96 ± 4.10 years (median 27 years). Among those women, the prevalence of induced abortion was 8.13 %. In the final model, females living in rural areas (OR = 1.21, 95 %CI: 1.04–1.39), individuals ages 18–25 (OR = 0.84, 95% CI: 0.72–0.99), individuals ages 30 or older (OR = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.42–1.86), and single individuals (OR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.05–2.83) were more likely to experience induced abortion. Wife gender preference (OR = 0.66, 95 %CI: 0.53–0.83), husband gender preference (Boy: OR = 1.33, 95 %CI: 1.10–1.63; Girl: OR = 1.5, 95% CI: 1.22–1.86), and the area where the individuals were located were significantly associated with the reporting of induced abortion.ConclusionThe prevalence of induced abortion is high among married women with child in China. There are also socio-demographic characteristics associated with induced abortion in China.