Multivariate (correspondence) analysis is employed to identify socioeconomic factors affecting fertility and infant mortality in Marrakesh (Morocco), using questionnaire data from some 3000 women attending 20 dispensaries in different parts of the city. Factors of the material environment (availability of water and electricity in the residence), size of household and number of wage earners in it are pervasive and suggest a polarity between archaic elements in the society (low material comfort, polygyny, absence of contraception) and the more forward looking (monogamy, tertiary occupations). Fertility and child mortality variations reflect this polarity. The differences that occur among the 20 dispensaries direct attention to the neighbourhoods where public health measures may be expected to be most effective and rewarding.

Data collected on fertility, mortality and family planning in two surveys in Papua New Guinea are presented. The first survey was conducted in rural and urban areas between November 1979 and March 1980 in eight provinces of Papua New Guinea, and the second between late June and early July 1981 in the Lae urban area. The unadjusted total fertility rates suggest that fertility is lower in the Lae urban area than in the rural and provincial urban areas. However, the adjusted rates indicate that fertility is higher in the provincial urban areas than in the rural and Lae urban areas. The results also confirm a trend towards lower infant and child mortality over the past 15 years, as well as the existence of moderate differentials between rural, provincial urban and the Lae urban areas.

Examination of 150 husband–wife pairs from the Otmoor villages of Oxfordshire for levels of similarity in their performance of seven subtests of the WAIS IQ test showed significant positive correlation in five subtests but not in digit span or digit symbol. In no test was there any relation between level of spouse similarity and length of marriage. Scores were varyingly associated with several factors known to be related to total IQ, such as social class and nature of education. When the effects of these factors on IQ variation were removed statistically most of the spouse similarity disappeared. However there remained a significant residual similarity in vocabulary performance and some suggestion of one in similarities and block design.

Do girls fall in love with an image of their father? This study tested the hypothesis that, in choosing a partner, people tend to replicate the physical and mental attributes of their opposite-sex parent more than of the same-sex parent. A sample of 314 women, mostly in their late teens and describing themselves as ‘in love’, supplied details of their boyfriends and parents. A tendency for the boyfriend's eye colour to match that of the father more than of the mother was found, as well as a tendency for girls to replicate the age and dominance relationships of the parental partnership in their own relationship. These effects were very small and of marginal significance.

The return of fertility post-partum and the incidence of pregnancy were studied in 74 mothers who chose not to breast-feed and who wanted another pregnancy promptly (Group I) and 143 mothers who practised exclusive lactation and decided not to use contraceptives (Group II). Women who breast-fed had much lower pregnancy rates than those who did not. During the first 6 months of the study, there were 53 (72%) pregnancies among the Group I women and no pregnancies among Group II mothers. Only sixteen (11%) women in Group II discontinued the study because of inadequate milk secretion. The low rate of pregnancy and the low rates of inadequate milk secretion in Group II appear related to the special efforts made to promote breast-feeding and give proper instruction to the mothers in this group. The successful lactation is attributed to a high suckling frequency, night feedings, ample mother and child skin-to-skin contact, avoidance of bottle feeding for as long as possible, and the clinical staff's regular emotional support and encouragement to the nursing mother.

The association between breast-feeding patterns and resumption of menses post-partum was examined in a longitudinal study initiated in March 1976 in Bangladesh. Information on suckling patterns and menstrual status was collected on 148 breast-feeding women who were still amenorrhoeic at 17–25 months post-partum at the beginning of the study. Suckling was measured during an 8-hr period once a month for up to 19 months of follow-up.

A high frequency of suckling was found, even at this late post-partum duration. Total suckling time and the number of suckling episodes declined with the age of the child but the mean duration of each episode did not change. The fact that regression analyses did not show a correlation between suckling patterns and return of menses post-partum may be related to the large individual variations in suckling patterns and in the duration of amenorrhoea in this population, and the need to study suckling patterns for longer than 8 hr per day.

This paper examines the degree to which childlessness is influenced by levels of modernization among the governorates of the Arab Republic of Egypt. In 1976, the higher the levels of modernization, the lower the rates of childlessness among women aged 30 and over, and the higher the rates of childlessness among women aged 20–30. The implications of these results for fertility and development are discussed.

High levels of fertility in rural areas of many developing societies are an issue of considerable concern to the scientific community and to those interested in public policy. This paper reports on the determinants of fertility in two rural areas in Egypt: Menoufia and Beni-Suef governorates. There are important differences in fertility between the two areas; the total fertility rate is 7·88 in Beni-Suef and 6·03 in Menoufia. These aggregate differences are the result of even larger differences between the two areas in the proximate determinants of fertility, particularly age at marriage, breast-feeding and contraceptive use. Much of the difference in breast-feeding behaviour can be explained by differences in the educational composition of the two populations; the level of female education in Menoufia is considerably higher than in Beni-Suef. However, differences in contraceptive use cannot be explained by differences in the socioeconomic composition of the two populations. The differences may be the result of greater institutional support for contraceptive use and lower fertility in Menoufia, where intensive family planning and maternal health programmes have been in operation for several years.

Findings are reported on 100 couples who had requested donor insemination as a means of circumventing male infertility. Twelve couples dropped out, but the remainder were graded for personal acceptability. Forty-six couples were recommended with only minor reservations if any, 40 were seen as unsatisfactory in varying degree, and two were rejected owing to gross marital and sexual problems. In one couple, early marital breakdown after childbirth occurred.

A strong sense of mutual commitment may be the norm in such couples but exchange of affection between partners, as measured by the Ryle marital patterns test, was less vivid than in an earlier study of childless couples waiting to adopt. The infertile husband may be in particular need of emotional support from his wife, and a careful appraisal of the marriage seems warranted before treatment.

This study investigates the effect of son preference on contraceptive use and desire for additional children using national level survey data from Bangladesh for the years 1969 and 1979. Son preference had a negative effect on contraceptive use and a positive effect on the desire for additional children regardless of socioeconomic and demographic characteristics. This adverse effect of son preference on fertility regulation seemed to have persisted over the years. Relevant socioeconomic conditions in Bangladesh are described.

This paper presents data from two recent maternal–child health (MCH) and family planning surveys in Guatemala and Panama and examines the extent to which the use of contraception is influenced by the use of MCH services as compared with the influence of an increase in parity. The findings suggest that utilization of MCH services and parity independently are associated with a woman's decision to use contraception. The study also found two groups that appear to be particularly in need of both MCH and family planning services: high parity women and Indians. In both Guatemala and Panama, improved health care services for these two groups should be a priority.