DMCA
Demand or Ideation? Evidence from the Iranian Marital Fertility Decline (1994)
| Venue: | Demography |
BibTeX
@ARTICLE{University94demandor,
author = {Adrian Raftery University and Adrian E. Raftery and Steven M. Lewis and Akbar Aghajanian},
title = {Demand or Ideation? Evidence from the Iranian Marital Fertility Decline},
journal = {Demography},
year = {1994},
volume = {32},
pages = {159--182}
}
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Abstract
Is the onset of fertility decline caused by structural socioeconomic changes, as affirmed by demand theory, or by the transmission of new ideas, as argued by ideation theory? The marital fertility decline in Iran before the Islamic Revolution provides an ideal, quasiexperimental, setting for addressing this question. Massive economic growth started around 1955, while big measurable ideational changes (the establishment of an aggressive official Family Planning Program and large improvements in the legal status of women) took place in 1967. The 1977 Iran Fertility Survey was carried out at just the right moment to separate these effects. We argue that the Iranian marital fertility decline is better described by demand theory than by ideation theory. The decline started in 1959, just after the onset of massive economic growth, but well before the ideational changes. The decline closely paralleled the rapid growth of primary educational participation, as predicted by demand theory, and w...
Keyphrases
iranian marital fertility decline demand theory ideation theory massive economic growth big measurable ideational change marital fertility decline rapid growth islamic revolution ideational change structural socioeconomic change fertility decline large improvement primary educational participation new idea right moment iran fertility survey legal status aggressive official family planning program
