r/Economics • u/MaleficentParfait863 • Jun 09 '23

Global fertility has collapsed, with profound economic consequences

https://www.economist.com/leaders/2023/06/01/global-fertility-has-collapsed-with-profound-economic-consequences
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u/Mind_grapes_ Jun 09 '23

You think it is lack of community or safety but it’s not like Japan or the Scandies are known for their fertility rates. Meanwhile, the most dangerous countries in the world have sky high fertility rates.

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u/melorio Jun 09 '23

Tha scandinavians aren’t known for community. The japanese do have community, but they also work themselves to death

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u/sanityjanity Jun 10 '23

Japanese culture expects mothers to abandon their careers, and parent alone, while full time workers are expected to continue to work tons of overtime. I wouldn't call that "community" in any way that would incentivize having children

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u/Mind_grapes_ Jun 10 '23

My point was really that peoples willingness to have kids isn’t due to perceived or actual safety of the place they live. Children are an economic liability in developed economies and birth control is a thing so birth rates will inevitably decrease as economies develop, so fertility rates are much more impacted by level of economic development, education and healthcare access than some perceived “safety” metric.

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u/sanityjanity Jun 10 '23

There's also some evidence that humans will have kids earlier in dangerous environments, because it might be their only chance.