title: Fertility decline and the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality.
abstract: In the course of demographic transitions (DTs), two large-scale trends become apparent: (i) the broadly positive association between wealth, status and fertility tends to reverse, and (ii) wealth inequalities increase and then temporarily decrease. We argue that these two broad patterns are linked, through a diversification of reproductive strategies that subsequently converge as populations consume more, become less self-sufficient and increasingly depend on education as a route to socio-economic status. We examine these links using data from 22 mid-transition communities in rural Poland. We identify changing relationships between fertility and multiple measures of wealth, status and inequality. Wealth and status generally have opposing effects on fertility, but these associations vary by community. Where farming remains a viable livelihood, reproductive strategies typical of both pre- and post-DT populations coexist. Fertility is lower and less variable in communities with lower wealth inequality, and macro-level patterns in inequality are generally reproduced at the community level. Our results provide a detailed insight into the changing dynamics of wealth, status and inequality that accompany DTs at the community level where peoples' social and economic interactions typically take place. We find no evidence to suggest that women with the most educational capital gain wealth advantages from reducing fertility, nor that higher educational capital delays the onset of childbearing in this population. Rather, these patterns reflect changing reproductive preferences during a period of profound economic and social change, with implications for our understanding of reproductive and socio-economic inequalities in transitioning populations.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Advanced Study in Toulouse, Toulouse School of Economics, Toulouse 31015, France Department of Anthropology, University College London, London WC1H 0BW, UK heidi.colleran@iast.fr.
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Colleran
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow 31-531, Poland.
authors.forename: Grazyna
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jasienska
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow 31-531, Poland.
authors.forename: Ilona
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Nenko
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow 31-531, Poland.
authors.forename: Andrzej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Galbarczyk
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, University College London, London WC1H 0BW, UK.
authors.forename: Ruth
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mace
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011044:Poland; D011157:Population Dynamics; D012424:Rural Population; D012923:Social Class; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: demographic transition; fertility decline; inequality; status; wealth
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