Preference Theory and Low Fertility: A Comparative Perspective

Agnese Vitali (1) , Francesco C. Billari (1) , Alexia Prskawetz (2, 3) , Maria Rita Testa (2)

1 "Carlo F. Dondena" Centre for Research on Social Dynamics, IMQ and IGIER
2 VID - Vienna Institute of Demography
3 Institute of Mathematical Methods in Economics, Research Unit Economics

The discussion on the causes of the most recent fertility decline in Europe, and in particular on the emergence of lowest-low fertility, emphasizes the relevance of cultural factors in addition to economic ones. As part of such a cultural framework, the heterogeneity of preferences concerning the “career vs. family” dichotomy has been systematized in the “Preference Theory” approach developed by Catherine Hakim. This heterogeneity in preferences, however, has so far been underinvestigated in a comparative framework. This paper makes use of comparative data from the 2004/2005 Round of the European Social Survey to test the links between individual-level preferences and both fertility outcomes and fertility intentions, in a variety of societal settings. Results confirm an association between work–family lifestyle preferences and realized fertility in a variety of European countries, while they do not show a relationship between lifestyle preferences and fertility intentions. Results further support the existence of heterogeneous patterns of association between lifestyle preferences and fertility choices among welfare regimes.

Mots clés: Preference Theory; Low and lowest-low fertility; Europe; European Social Survey; Welfare regime; Théorie des préférences; Fécondités les plus basses; Enquête Sociale Européenne; Régime d'Etat-providence

Agnese Vitali, Francesco C. Billari, Alexia Prskawetz, Maria Rita Testa. Preference Theory and Low Fertility: A Comparative Perspective. European Journal of Population / Revue européenne de Démographie, 2009, 25 (4), pp.413-438. ⟨10.1007/s10680-009-9178-x⟩. ⟨hal-00535472⟩