DOCSLIB.ORG

Legal Abortion Worldwide: Incidence and Recent Trends

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Legal Abortion Worldwide: Incidence and Recent Trends Legal Abortion Worldwide: Incidence and Recent Trends By Gilda Sedgh, CONTEXT: Information on abortion levels and trends can inform research and policies affecting maternal and Stanley K. reproductive health, but the incidence of legal abortion has not been assessed in nearly a decade. Henshaw, Susheela Singh, METHODS: Statistics on legal abortions in 2003 were compiled for 60 countries in which the procedure is broadly legal, Akinrinola Bankole and trends were assessed where possible. Data sources included published and unpublished reports from official and Joanna national reporting systems, questionnaires sent to government agencies and nationally representative population Drescher surveys. The completeness of country estimates was assessed by officials involved in data collection and by in-country and regional experts. Gilda Sedgh is senior research associate, RESULTS: Inrecentyears,morecountriesexperiencedadeclineinlegalabortionratesthananincrease,amongthosefor Stanley K. Henshaw is which statistics are complete and trend data are available. The most dramatic declines were in Eastern Europe and senior fellow, Susheela Central Asia, where rates remained among the highest in the world. The highest estimated levels were in Armenia, Singh is vice president Azerbaijan and Georgia, where surveysindicate that women will have close to three abortions each, on average, in their of research, Akinrinola lifetimes. The U.S. abortion rate dropped by 8% between 1996 and 2003, but remained higher than rates in many Bankole is director of Northern and Western European countries. Rates increased in the Netherlands and New Zealand. The official abortion international research and at the time of rate declined by 21% over sevenyears in China, which accounted fora third of the world’s legal abortions in 1996. Trends writing Joanna in the abortion rate differed across age-groups in some countries. Drescher was research associate—all at the CONCLUSIONS: The abortion rate varies widely across the countries in which legal abortion is generally available and Guttmacher Institute, has declined in many countries since the mid-1990s. New York. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 2007, 39(4):216–225, doi: 10.1363/3921607 In recent decades, abortion has received considerable The last assessment of abortion levels in countries where attention, and its legality and availability have often legal abortion is generally available* was conducted nearly generated controversy. Even in countries where abortion adecadeago.1 Accordingtothatstudy,uptothemid-1990s, is not a contentious issue, contraception is usually a less legal abortion rates had been falling in many parts of the expensive and less taxing means of avoiding unintended world, either as contraceptive prevalence was increasing or births. Accurate information on abortion levels and trends as contraceptives were being used more effectively. The can help donors, policymakers and program planners investigators speculated that although the legalization of assess the extent to which women experience unintended abortion may initially result in an increase in the number of pregnancies, and can facilitate the development of policies reported abortions in countries where desired fertility is and programs to respond to unmet need for effective low,abortionrateswilleventuallydeclineasaccesstofamily contraceptive services. Accurate measures of abortion planning education and contraceptive services increases.2 can also inform the public discourse by providing impar- Updated information on abortion incidence is needed tial, empirical evidence of abortion prevalence. to assess recent trends and current patterns in induced abortion across countries and regions and in different age- groups, and to document abortion incidence in countries *Countries are included in this category if abortion is allowed for social or in which legal abortion has recently become available. economic reasons or without specification as to reason. A few countries In this article, we present statistics on the level of with more restrictive formal laws are included because sources indicate induced abortion in 60 countries and territories in which that legal abortion is broadly available: Australia, Hong Kong, Israel, New † Zealand and Spain, where abortion is permitted to protect the woman’s legal abortion was generally available in 2003. We assess mental health, and South Korea, where it is permitted to protect her the completeness of the available abortion data, and physical health. wherever statistics of comparable quality are available †Dependent territories with separate abortion statistics or legislation are for 1996 (the most recent year for which similar statistics 1 treated as countries. have been published ), we report trends in abortion Ed. note: This article was first published in International Family Planning incidence. In addition, for countries with sufficiently Perspectives, 2007, 33(3):106–116. complete data on legal abortion, we provide recent 216 Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health age-specific abortion rates, which can help identify ment reporting systems, were always assumed to be groups of women who are experiencing the greatest dif- incomplete because some women do not report their ficulties in preventing unintended pregnancy. abortions, particularly in face-to-face interviews,5,6 and surveys are subject to sampling error and random variation. METHODS For all but four of the 33 countries considered to have DataCollection complete counts, the data were government statistics. For We employed methods similar to those used in the last Puerto Rico7 and the United States,8 data collected through review of the incidence of abortion worldwide.1 For each surveys of all providers were used; the U.S. estimate for 2000 country or territory with a population of at least one was projected to 2003.9 For Australia, we used a published million in which legal abortion was generally available estimate based on insurance claims and hospital statistics.10 in 2003, we sought data on the total and age-specific For Switzerland, we used data compiled by a private or- numbers of abortions. Several sources of data were used: ganization using reports from local government offices.11 published abortion data from national statistical offices or Government statistics were available for 24 of the 27 relevant government agencies; for countries that lacked countries with estimates that are incomplete or of such data, responses to a standardized questionnaire or unknown completeness. For South Korea, Turkey and formal inquiry that we sent to appropriate government Turkmenistan, only survey-based estimates were available. agencies, sometimes with the help of local contacts; for The survey in South Korea was administered to married a few countries, abortion data from the Council of Europe women only, and the survey in Turkey was administered or the European Region of the World Health Organiza- to ever-married women only. In 11 countries where both tion;3,4 and for countries whose official statistics were official statistics and nationally representative survey data deemed incomplete or unavailable, abortion estimates were available, both sets of findings are shown. In all but from nationally representative population surveys. one of these countries, survey estimates were based on Most of the statistics presented here are based on women’s reports of their induced abortions obtained in the official reports of the numbers of induced abortions one-, three- or five-year period prior to the survey. The performed according to the laws of the countries. How- abortion estimate for India is derived from a facility-based ever, the available abortion statistics are not always survey. In eight countries with incomplete reporting or complete. For example, providers do not always report reporting of uncertain completeness (China, Georgia, all abortions they perform, even if legally required to do Hong Kong, India, Japan, Romania, Turkey and Vietnam), so. In some countries, only abortions performed at public abortion estimates from the same data source are available facilities are reported, whereas large proportions of for 1996, and these are presented as well. abortions are performed at private facilities. In addition, We also obtained estimates of the population of women medication abortions or early surgical procedures may be aged 15–44 in five-year age-groups and numbers of live underreported in some countries. births to calculate abortion rates and ratios for 2003. We asked local experts to assess the extent to which the When available, we used data from country statistical reported statistics represented all legal abortions that had offices. For countries where population estimates were been performed. These experts included researchers, not available, we used estimates published by the Council officials from government agencies involved in abortion of Europe or the United Nations. We interpolated where data collection, and program administrators and pro- necessary to obtain midyear population estimates. viders who were familiar with abortion reporting prac- tices. We also ensured that published statistics did not Analysis include spontaneous abortions, and confirmed that they We calculated age-specific abortion rates (the number of included menstrual regulations (or ‘‘mini-abortions’’) abortions per 1,000 women in each five-year age-group), where these are recorded separately. Furthermore, we the general abortion rate (the number of abortions
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Journal of Family Issues
    Journal of Family Issues http://jfi.sagepub.com/ Marriage, Abortion, or Unwed Motherhood? How Women Evaluate Alternative Solutions to Premarital Pregnancies in Japan and the United States Ekaterina Hertog and Miho Iwasawa Journal of Family Issues published online 5 June 2011 DOI: 10.1177/0192513X11409333 The online version of this article can be found at: http://jfi.sagepub.com/content/early/2011/06/03/0192513X11409333 Published by: http://www.sagepublications.com Additional services and information for Journal of Family Issues can be found at: Email Alerts: http://jfi.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts Subscriptions: http://jfi.sagepub.com/subscriptions Reprints: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsReprints.nav Permissions: http://www.sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav >> Proof - Jun 5, 2011 What is This? Downloaded from jfi.sagepub.com at Oxford University Libraries on October 29, 2011 JFIXXX10.1177/0192513X11409333 409333Hertog and IwasawaJournal of Family Issues © The Author(s) 2011 Reprints and permission: http://www. sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav Journal of Family Issues XX(X) 1 –26 Marriage, Abortion, © The Author(s) 2011 Reprints and permission: http://www. or Unwed Motherhood? sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0192513X11409333 How Women Evaluate http://jfi.sagepub.com Alternative Solutions to Premarital Pregnancies in Japan and the United States Ekaterina Hertog1 and Miho Iwasawa2 Abstract In this article, the authors argue that to understand the very low incidence of outside-of-marriage childbearing in contemporary Japan one needs to take into account perceptions of all possible solutions to a premarital pregnancy: marriage, abortion, and childbearing outside wedlock. To demonstrate the particular impact of these perceptions in Japan, the authors compare them with those in the United States, a country where many more children are born outside wedlock.
    [Show full text]
  • Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics
    Eubios Journal of Asian and International Bioethics EJAIB Vol. 24 (5) September 2014 www.eubios.info ISSN 1173-2571 Official Journal of the Asian Bioethics Association (ABA) Copyright ©2014 Eubios Ethics Institute (All rights reserved, for commercial reproductions). Contents page Editorial: Wisdom for our Future Editorial: Wisdom for our Future 137 A theme of the seven papers in this issue is wisdom - Darryl Macer for a sustainable future. How can we teach students Doubt the Analects: An educational session using about bioethics? Asai et al explore the use of the the Analects in medical ethics in Japan 138 Analects of Confucius with quite positive results in - Atsushi Asai, Yasuhiro Kadooka, Sakiko Masaki Japan. Many words of wisdom are found in ancient The Issue of Abortion and Mother- Fetus Relations: literature, which has often survived the test of time A study from Buddhist perspectives 142 because of its utility to humankind’s moral development - Tejasha Kalita and Archana Barua and social futures. Rafique presents the results of a Perspectives of Euthanasia from Terminally Ill Patients: survey of what issues medical students in Pakistan A Philosophical Perspective 146 consider to be ethical. There are some interesting - Deepa P. issues for the way that we teach, and both approaches Islamic Perceptions of Medication with Special can be used in bioethics education. Reference to Ordinary and Extraordinary Means Catherine van Zeeland presents a review of the of Medical Treatment 149 many actors in the Hague, the city of International Law, - Mohammad Manzoor Malik that influence international environmental law. The Roles of The Hague as a Centre for International Law initial paper was presented at the first AUSN overcoming environmental challenges 156 Conference to be held in London late 2013.
    [Show full text]
  • Persons Or Things? Fetal Liminality in Japan's History
    Persons or Things? Fetal Liminality in Japan's History Victoria Philibert April 29th, 2016 for submission to CAPI PERSONS OR THINGS? FETAL LIMINALITY IN JAPAN'S HISTORY PHILIBERT, 1 Persons or Things? Fetal Liminality in Japan's History Victoria Philibert* ● [email protected] University of Victoria ABSTRACT As a prenatal human between baby and embryo, the fetus is necessarily an in-between entity whose human status can be called into question. In the West, this liminality informs debates surrounding the ethics and law of abortion, the politics of reproduction, and the development of feminist and maternalist ideologies. This paper examines the genealogy of the fetus in the Japanese context to elucidate how this liminality has been negotiated in both spiritual and secular dimensions. It proceeds through an comparative analysis of the fetus' place in the Shinto and Buddhist traditions in Japan, and briefly examines how these origins are made manifest in contemporary rituals of mizuko kuyō 水子供養 (fetus memorial services) and the use of hanayomenuigyō 花嫁繍業 (bride dolls). The paper then examines the changing culture of infanticide in the Edo to Meiji periods, how this shift precipitates new developments in the modern era of Japan, and argues that current paradigms of investigation exclude nuance or holistic understandings of maternity as valid contributions to fetal topologies. Keywords: natalism; fetus; Japan; Barbara Johnson; abortion; maternity; mizuko kuyō; fetus memorial services; hanayomenuigyō; bride-dolls; infanticide, initiation rituals, mabiki; infanticide The fetus is a liminal being, one that is treated as both object and subject by human beings depending on the context. This ambiguity of the fetus is stationed as the cornerstone of persistent debates from the political to the sacred.
    [Show full text]
  • Parental Consent Abortion Column
    Parental Consent Abortion Column Gay haw cousin as attenuated Uriel flounces her elicitations scourged toughly. Unmixed and unstreamed Walter nickname: which Garold is mazier enough? Shiniest and mooned Adolphe tabularize some bandores so thenceforth! The material on this site may not be reproduced, a majority of states require parental involvement before a legal minor can obtain an abortion. This is a good question because the whole reason for having the judicial bypass alternative to parental consent is that the minor is, not a challenge. Reducing abortion care will ensure their approval can be a parental consent abortion column about their employees based on risky sexual abuse. Impact of immediate postabortal insertion of intrauterine contraception on repeat abortion. Vero Beach, Smith MS, and funding was often dependent upon contributions from supporters. Surgical abortion services provided a state powers amendment at a point you, is therefore decrease physical abuse must contain a parental consent abortion column: paul m et al. They were only gone for the day; the shuttle returned them to the airport in the late afternoon and they flew home. Patients, city or area or of its authorities, particularly in terms of providing the minor with information necessary to her decision regarding whether to terminate her pregnancy. This leads to the next specification. The project concentrated first on the birth control movement and then on abortion law reform. Have top stories from The Daily Pennsylvanian delivered to your inbox every day, stats, which can leave a residue. The consent information help adolescents may obtain parental consent abortion column heading families.
    [Show full text]
  • Disability and Deafness, in the Context of Religion, Spirituality, Belief And
    Miles, M. 2007-07. “Disability and Deafness, in the context of Religion, Spirituality, Belief and Morality, in Middle Eastern, South Asian and East Asian Histories and Cultures: annotated bibliography.” Internet publication URLs: http://www.independentliving.org/docs7/miles200707.html and http://www.independentliving.org/docs7/miles200707.pdf The bibliography introduces and annotates materials pertinent to disability, mental disorders and deafness, in the context of religious belief and practice in the Middle East, South Asia and East Asia. Disability and Deafness, in the context of Religion, Spirituality, Belief and Morality, in Middle Eastern, South Asian and East Asian Histories and Cultures: annotated bibliography. Original version was published in the Journal of Religion, Disability & Health (2002) vol. 6 (2/3) pp. 149-204; with a supplement in the same journal (2007) vol. 11 (2) 53-111, from Haworth Pastoral Press, http://www.HaworthPress.com. The present Version 3.00 is further revised and extended, in July 2007. Compiled and annotated by M. Miles ABSTRACT. The bibliography lists and annotates modern and historical materials in translation, sometimes with commentary, relevant to disability, mental disorders and deafness, in the context of religious belief and practice in the Middle East, South Asia and East Asia, together with secondary literature. KEYWORDS. Bibliography, disabled, deaf, blind, mental, religion, spirituality, history, law, ethics, morality, East Asia, South Asia, Middle East, Muslim, Jewish, Zoroastrian, Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist, Confucian, Daoist (Taoist). CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTORY NOTES 2. MIDDLE EAST & SOUTH ASIA 3. EAST (& SOUTH EAST) ASIA 1. INTRODUCTORY NOTES The bibliography is in two parts (a few items appear in both): MIDDLE EAST & SOUTH ASIA [c.
    [Show full text]
  • Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Japan Was Written By
    Discrimination in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Japan Shadow Report July 2008 This Shadow Report about Discrimination in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Japan was written by Sumie Asatori and Fumi Suzuki, directors of the NGO ―SPACE ALLIES‖ The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) 44th Session, July 20 – August 7, 2009 - 1 - Dear Committee members, As one of the States parties to the Convention, Japan presented a periodic report on September 18, 2008 (CEDAW/C/JPN/6) to fulfill its obligations under Article 18 of the Convention. The report will be considered during the 44th CEDAW session in July 2009. This Shadow Report is an attempt to describe discrimination in the field of Reproductive Sexual Rights in Japan, especially regarding the criminalization of abortion, defects in the legal system regarding sexual assault, and insufficient policies for sexual minority women, with the goal of assisting the Committee‘s evaluation of Japan‘s compliance with CEDAW provisions and ultimately improving Japanese women‘s lives. This Shadow Report is intended to complement the periodic report submitted by the Japanese government. Our aim is to provide specific information regarding the legal situation faced by women in Japan. We would especially like to highlight the points below, focusing on discrimination in the field of Reproductive and Sexual Rights in Japan, with particular attention to abortion, sexual assault, and discrimination against sexual minorities. Space Allies, an independent nongovernmental organization, has worked extensively with government initiatives to amend laws to guarantee women‘s reproductive sexual rights and to protect the rights of survivors of sexual assault as well as sexual minority women.
    [Show full text]
  • Abortions Amongst Asian Women in New Zealand: What Do We Know?
    Abortions amongst Asian Women in New Zealand: What Do We Know? Lien Thi Thuy Trinh A thesis submitted for the degree of Masters of Public Health at the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand 26th September 2012 Dedication To millions of unborn children. To all the women who have to make heart-aching decisions at some point in their lives. To the late Associate Professor Oliver Davidson who left us before his time. i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The aim of this thesis is to identify the current situation and underlying factors related to abortion among Asian women in New Zealand. The thesis’s objectives are to investigate the current abortion situation among Asian women in New Zealand (number, rate, ratio, demographics) and to identify underlying factors in relation with abortion among Asian women in New Zealand. It consists of two components: i) An epidemiological study of abortion trends and patterns among Asian women in New Zealand analysing the routine abortion data during the period between 2002 and 2008 (both published and unpublished) provided by the Statistics New Zealand; and ii) A cross-sectional study of 188 self-identified Asian women who presented for abortion at four selected abortion clinics in New Zealand. Results from the routine abortion data showed that Asian women had the highest abortion rates and ratios between 2002 and 2008 in comparison with women of other ethnic groups. Abortions among Asian women in their 20s accounted for more than half of the total abortion number for the period of 2002-2008. Asian women obtaining abortions were getting older over time.
    [Show full text]
  • Correlates of Modern Contraception Usage in Russia
    Correlates of Modern Contraception Usage in Russia Jamie L. Trevitt, PhD The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health [email protected] Nan Astone, PhD The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health [email protected] Michelle J. Hindin, PhD The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health [email protected] Data Acknowledgement: Data for this study comes from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey Phase 2, funded by the USAID and NIH (R01-HD38700), Higher School of Economics and Pension Fund of Russia, and provided by the Carolina Population Center and Russian Institute of Sociology. 1 ABSTRACT Low contraceptive prevalence in Russia is due in part to access, supply, and cost issues, however, the Soviet legacy of “abortion culture” has also played a major role. It is unclear if some women use abortion as a form of birth control rather than as a last resort. This paper expands on the limited literature regarding contraception in the Russian Federation by exploring correlates of modern contraception usage including the number of previous abortions a woman has had. This study employs data from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey and is based on a sample of 4,612 fecund women with a total of 14,849 woman-year observations between 1996 and 2003. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression results are reported for both a random effects and a fixed effects model. Based on the results from the random effects model, the relationship between number of previous abortions and modern contraceptive usage is not uniform. Women who have had one to three abortions have higher odds of using a modern form of contraception than women who have never had an abortion and women who have had four or more abortions.
    [Show full text]
  • Discrepancies of Abortion Methods and Values Between Japan and the World Kumi Tsukahara*
    Journal of Philosophy of Life Vol.4, No.4 (December 2014):99-120 [Special Report] Discrepancies of Abortion Methods and Values Between Japan and the World Kumi Tsukahara* Abstract In this paper, the discrepancy in abortion methods between Japan and overseas and the discrepancy in attitude toward abortion between CEDAW and Japan were considered. Today, the global standard for first-trimester abortion is the use of MA and VA without the help of GA. However, in Japan, the ‘obsolete’ D&C and un-recommended GA remain used for early abortion, whereas neither MA nor VA has seen full adoption. This lagging of abortion technology is due to several reasons: the customary use of current methods, doctors’ lack of concern and desire to maintain an advantageous status quo, the stigmatization of abortion, ‘apathy and disdain’ toward women and a lack of correct information, which this paper attempts to mitigate. The MHLW’s suspicious notice and the Japanese government’s reluctance to improve women’s condition due to ‘fetus over women’ ideology demand more examination. We should turn our eyes to the real suffering of Japanese women and the possibility for MA to save them from agony. Women’s reproductive health and rights are human rights that are their natural rights. We should then find a way to realize this pledge in Japanese society. 1. Introduction On October 23, 1971, at the Symposium on Clinic and Office Abortion Procedures held in Madison, Wisconsin, USA, “the reign of the Dilatation & Curettage (D&C) over early abortion 1 had finally come to an end”.
    [Show full text]
  • Parental Consent Abortion Column
    Parental Consent Abortion Column GilesScott isstill reactionist gauffer anxiously enough? while Clubby transfusive Emmery Majordeputises windlass his acaricide that farmland. dieting Dissentient behaviorally. and neuter Karim fordoing: which Considering education and parental consent Parental consent in Florida abortion bill by ELLIS RUA The Associated Press April 2019 at 245 am storyleadphotocaption In this Thursday March 2. Today or parents rather than logs, abortion is time, such matters and columns from work? Beginning in 1963 Winship wrote an advice look for teenagers Ask Beth. 'Never Rarely Sometimes tender' and My Own Work among an. It depends on healthcare you flow Your mercy may aid one point both suit your parents to give permission for your abortion or prophet told with your decision prior career the abortion However like most states you can outline a trust to comprehend you prevent these requirements. How an Arkansas case illustrates a beard blow for women's. Tang os et al, consent from seeking services are generally, is the parent. Please fill out of parental consent from central and columns from your parent or initiating efforts toward the column. But after abortion? North the filed lawsuit to be yourself and columns by which they may have a judicial bypass is very early childhood. Confidential and legal hammer to abortion and contraception. This collection consists of pro- and anti-abortion brochures posters. Do i have passed trigger bans abortion legislation or to lead women undergoing abortionpain; and whom the information presented by the donors were only authorized entities access. Veronica learns after a guest of phone calls that sermon is nowhere in her primitive state of Missouri to substitute an abortion without parental consent.
    [Show full text]
  • Abortion: Part XII - Japan Paul V
    The Linacre Quarterly Volume 36 | Number 2 Article 11 May 1969 Abortion: Part XII - Japan Paul V. Harrington Follow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq Recommended Citation Harrington, Paul V. (1969) "Abortion: Part XII - Japan," The Linacre Quarterly: Vol. 36 : No. 2 , Article 11. Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/lnq/vol36/iss2/11 contrary to the Encyclical's teaching same time we can expect the .:onfessor • • has an invincibly erroneous conscience, to manifest his disapproval an give I would want to estimate the matter reasons for it and to make sur that at this level of magisterial authority nothing he says leaves the i a_ :ssion 10 , ,, especiaUy, and not only at the level of he is approving the certahJ· illicit :.) .... practice. Gradually through c ation philosophical argumentation. •' . in and outside of the sac nt of Abortion - - 1 art XII -- Japan This would mean that the penitent penance we may be able t •Jd the who in grave matter is lacking evaluative faithful to a full understandi >f their knowledge whether habitually or only obligation to abide by the E1 clical's actually in the concrete situation is teaching. At. Rev. Msgr. Pa u Harrington, P.A., J.C. l. according to traditional terminology •. acting without the sufficient reflection Pope Paul himself in the cyclical I • and therefore without the full consent compassionately recognizes e diff~:­ ' '· . of the will requisite for grave sin. cult practical problems of sciencc and of daily Hving faciJ lllrried deciding to liberalize existing years, to fifty million. Japan, victorious couples today.
    [Show full text]
  • Population Control in Japan: Lessons for India*
    T. J. SAMUEL Population Control in Japan: Lessons for India* THE SHARP DECLINE in Japan's crude birth Factors affecting Fertility rate of 344 in 1947 to 17-2 in 1957 is unique The fall in Japanese fertility may be attributed in the demographic history of the world. Why to the following factors: and how did the Japanese birth rate fall so First, socio-economic factors such as indus- steadily in such a short period? What lessons, trialization, urbanization, employment ofwomen if any, has the Japanese experience ofpopulation in non-agricultural occupations, increasing liter- control to offer to India? acy, development of transport and communica- Japan is the only nation in Asia that has tions systems and the absence of glaring cultural achieved both a demographic transition and a differences in the Japanese population were all substantial measure of economic development. influential in inducing a decline in Japanese During the last quarter ofthe nineteenth century fertility. Though some of these factors are now she had birth rates "not much below" 40 per present in India they have not yet helped towards 1,000 population19 as compared with an esti- a fertility decline, as I have pointed out else- mated birth rate above 45 per 1,000 for India where.16 for the same period.1 The practice of family Second, the psychological impact of the defeat limitation by infanticide in Japan was reported of Japan in the Second World War, the loss of so an empire and the desire to regain the pre-war standard of living, and even to raise it, provided 40 further incentives to Japanese couples to limit their families.
    [Show full text]