WEALTH AND FERTILITY

For the whole of the past century an inverse comparison between human fertility and economic development has been determined. This indicates  that as a country got wealthy, the average number of babies born to each woman got reduced. While in the developing countries women often have nine children, the rate fell as low as 1.2  in most European nations such as Italy, which is so below the replacement rate. with  such a low rate has atmost  negative impacts: the population will fall in the long term, and a growing number of old people will have to be supported by a shrinking number of young also revealed as juvenile deliquency. But a recent study by researchers from Pennsylvania University suggests that this pattern may be changing. They related countries’ fertility rates to their human development index (HDI), a figure with a maximum value of 1.0, which assesses life expectancy, average income and education level. Over 20 countries now have an HDI of more than 0.9, and in a majority of these the fertility rate has started to increase, and in some is approaching two children per woman. Although there are exceptions such as Japan, it appears that ever higher levels of wealth and education eventually translate into a desire for more children.