title: Still childless at the age of 32: An investigation of predictors in 22-year-old women and men.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to investigate if family background and attitudes in early adulthood contribute to postponement of parenthood. Postponement of parenthood is associated with increased need for artificial reproductive techniques, increased risk for adverse pregnancy outcomes and reduced fertility rates.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a cohort study including 1000 women and men aged 22 years from the Swedish Young Adult Panel Study. Questionnaire data were linked to information from the Swedish Total Population Register 10 years later. Logistic regression analyses were conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Background factors associated with being childless were: being second-generation Polish or Turkish (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% confidence intervals [CI] 1.2-2.0), growing up in a large city (OR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1-2.0), well-educated mother (OR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1-1.9) or father (OR 1.4; 95% CI 1.1-1.9), no siblings (OR 1.9; 95% CI 1.1-3.2), living in parental home (OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.6-3.1), less than good assessment of own mother (OR 1.8; 95% CI 1.2-2.7) or father (OR 1.4; 95% CI 1.0-1.9) as a parent, and less than satisfactory relationship with own mother (OR 1.5; 95% CI 1.1-2.1). Attitudes associated with being childless were: not enjoying children (OR 2.7; 95% CI 2.0-3.6), finding that one could be satisfied in life without being a good parent (OR 2.3; 95% CI 1.7-3.0) and not assuming that one will have children in the future (OR 2.9; 95% CI 2.1-3.9).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings suggest that postponement of parenthood to the age of 32 could partly be explained by family background and negative or ambivalent attitudes to children and parenthood in early adulthood.
authors: Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden Centre for Evidence-Based Practice, Bergen University College, Norway abvn@hib.no.
authors: Anne Britt Vika
authors: AB
authors: Nilsen
authors: Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
authors: Ulla
authors: U
authors: Waldenström
authors: Centre for Evidence-Based Practice, Bergen University College, Norway.
authors: Birgitte
authors: B
authors: Espehaug
authors: Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden Centre for Clinical Research Dalarna, Sweden.
authors: Erica
authors: E
authors: Schytt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005190:Family / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D043762:Reproductive Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D013548:Sweden; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Postponing parenthood; attitudes; childlessness; family background; men; predictors; women