Family Welfare Effort, Total Fertility, and In Vitro Fertilization: Explaining the Israeli Anomaly

Abstract

The theory of family welfare effort is a leading macro‐sociological explanation of variation in human fertility. It holds that states which provide universally available, inexpensive, high‐quality day care, generous parental leave, and flexible work schedules lower the opportunity cost of motherhood. They thus enable women, especially those in lower socioeconomic strata, to have the number of babies they want. A considerable body of research supports this theory. However, it is based almost exclusively on analyses of Western European and North American countries. This paper examines the Israeli case because Israel's total fertility rate is anomalously high given its family welfare effort. Based on a review of the relevant literature and a reanalysis of data from various published sources, it explains the country's unusually high total fertility rate as the product of (1) religious and nationalistic sentiment that is heightened by the Jewish population's perception of a demographic threat in the form of a burgeoning Palestinian population and (2) the state's resulting support for pro‐natal policies, including the world's most extensive in vitro fertilization (IVF) system. The paper also suggests that Israel's IVF policy may not be in harmony with the interests of many women insofar as even women with an extremely low likelihood of becoming pregnant are encouraged to undergo the often lengthy, emotionally and physically painful, and risky process of IVF.

Cumulative live-birth, perinatal and obstetric outcomes for POSEIDON groups after IVF/ICSI cycles: a single-center retrospective study

“…exclusion criteria. (1) Patient with a normal response for ovarian stimulation; (2) received ovum donor for IVF ; (3) not having received a trigger for final oocyte maturation; or embryo transfer ; (4) patients with oocyte freezing cycles; (5) women in any group who aged to become eligible for another group, during the follow-up; (6) Cases with severe male factors.…”

“…Infertility accounts for the majority of gynecological conditions worldwide, and its treatment has an overwhelmingly monetary and time concern 1,2 . These concerns resonate with couples' dire need for a child 3 .…”

Women’s Intention to Abort a Fetus Diagnosed With a Genetic Disease: Results From Israel, Cyprus, and Germany

“…We suspect that this high sense of control can be explained by the fact that almost every Israeli woman who wants an abortion will probably be able to do so, since medical committees approve 99% of the requests for pregnancy termination (Israeli Ministry of Health, 2017). Furthermore, this higher sense of control might also stem from the notion that if they have future fertility problems, they will receive support from the government, as the Israeli health system provides more free fertility treatments than either Germany or Cyprus (Shenhav-Goldberg et al, 2019). The study results also indicate that the lowest sense of control was reported by Cypriot women.…”

Women’s Intention to Abort a Fetus Diagnosed with a Genetic Disease: Results from Israel, Cyprus and Germany

“…We suspect that this high sense of control can be explained by the fact that almost every Israeli woman who wants an abortion is likely to be successful, since the abortion medical committees approves 99% of the requests for pregnancy termination [11]. Furthermore, this higher sense of control might also stem from the notion that if they have future fertility problems, they will receive support from the government, as the Israeli health system provides more free fertility treatments than either Germany or Cyprus [40]. We can also learn from the study results that the lowest sense of control was reported among Cypriot women.…”