Browsing by Subject "well-being"

Objectives: Life satisfaction has been found to influence whether people have children. More research is needed, however, to clarify the specific role of life satisfaction on fertility intentions and their realization. In addition, no studies so far have examined whether life satisfaction has a moderating role on the realization of fertility intentions. This study examined the associations between life satisfaction and fertility intentions as well as their realization based on the Theory of Planned Behavior. The study contributes to further understanding of people’s fertility decision-making process, which also enables the design of better policies to influence fertility behavior on the societal level. Methods: Two samples from a German longitudinal panel survey (pairfam) were examined: a total sample consisting of men and women aged 18–45 who were in a relationship (n = 1031), and a sample consisting of childless men and women aged 18–35 who were in a relationship (n = 682). Linear regression was used to study the association between life satisfaction and fertility intentions. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between life satisfaction and realized fertility two years later, as well as the moderating role of life satisfaction on the realization of fertility intentions. All models were adjusted for age, gender, education level, employment status, relationship status, parity, and area of residence. Results: Life satisfaction was association with fertility intentions in men, but only in the total sample and not in the childless sample. In addition, life satisfaction was associated with the realization of fertility intentions for the first child for both genders, and among women for all parities. Marginally significant interaction effects were found between life satisfaction and fertility intentions on the likelihood of having a child two years later for women, suggesting that high life satisfaction can increase the likelihood of having a child when fertility intentions are uncertain. Conclusions: Life satisfaction is associated with the intention to have further children in men and with the realization of fertility intentions, especially in women. The results are mainly in line with previous research. They highlight the fact that people’s overall life satisfaction has an important role in fertility behavior and should be considered in policymaking.