Factors that interfer in breach of the reproductive expectations of spanish women

Abstract

The objective of this article is to verify the gap between the desired number of children and the real number of children in Spanish women and to know the personal reasons and the structural factors that can influence this gap. Data have been used from the 2018 Fertility Survey of the National Statistics Institute. Specifically, women between 45 and 55 years of age have been selected, who are those who have already completed their reproductive cycle and two binary logistic regression models have been made, one for women who have not had children, and another for those who have been mothers, but they have had less than desired. The results suggest that this gap exists and that the ideal of the two children is still rooted. It is also observed that a delay in the age of first maternity causes the final number of children to be less than desired. This group of women also mentions health problems, lack of financial resources and the difficulty of making work and family life compatible as reasons why they have not fulfilled their reproductive desires. Infertility occurs mainly as a result of a personal decision not to want to be a mother and due to health problems. Regarding the level of education, it is seen that those with primary studies, compared to women with university studies, are those who wish they had children.