Second-Child Fertility Intentions among Urban Women in China: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

With the adjustment of China’s fertility policy, the topic of women’s fertility has attracted much attention. In particular, urban women face a difficult choice between family and work. This study analyzed the prevalence and determinants of second-child fertility intention among urban women in China and aimed to provide evidence for improving fertility rate measures. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted using quantitative primary studies. We identified 16 cross-sectional studies that investigated a total of 24,979 urban women. The prevalence of second-child fertility intentions was 37%. A subgroup analysis revealed that the highest prevalence was observed between 2016 and 2017, and the lowest was observed in first-tier cities. Meta-analyses indicated that 18 factors were significantly associated with second-child fertility intentions, including demographic factors, fertility attitude, husbands, children, parents, or others. The findings of this study highlight the low second-child fertility intentions among urban women in China. Therefore, policymakers should consider various aspects, gradually optimizing fertility-supporting facilities, while encouraging fertility.

Women's fertility knowledge and their number of children ever born: A cross‐sectional study in Shiraz, Iran

“…Previous research has shown that the aforementioned demographic variables have an effect on fertility. 35 , 36 , 37 …”

“…Previous research has shown that the aforementioned demographic variables have an effect on fertility. [35][36][37] Increasing women's fertility knowledge significantly reduced the total number of children ever born. This issue can show that these women are aware of the complications of repeated pregnancies.…”

“…Class belonging expresses characteristics such as education level and income, so it is not far from the expectation that the lower classes have a higher average fertility because they, for example, have a lower education level. Previous research has shown that the aforementioned demographic variables have an effect on fertility 35–37 …”

Research on influencing factors of college teachers’ second child fertility intentions——Taking Jinan as an example

“…The previous studies analyzing various factors affecting fertility intentions provide a solid theoretical and practical foundation for this study. Scholars have conducted many studies on the factors influencing the fertility intentions of the general population to have a second child [ 32 , 33 ]. To date, there have been few studies on the fertility intentions of specific groups of people, and only a small number of scholars have studied the fertility intentions of specific samples of people such as early childhood teachers [ 34 ], college students [ 35 ], and transient population [ 36 ].…”

The shift in ideal family size: Examining the impact of marriage and parenthood

“…Despite the widespread interest in this topic, the existing research has primarily focused on describing trends in fertility willingness at the macro level (Yu and Xie, 2022) and examining determinants of fertility willingness through subgroup comparisons using cross-sectional data at the micro level (Yang et al, 2023). The individual-level changes in fertility ideals are not well understood.…”