In a case-control study among the urban poor of Dhaka, Bangladesh, the association of maternal education and family income with severity of disease due to diarrhoea in children was examined. After adjusting for family income, 7 or more years of school education was associated with 54% reduced risk of severe disease as indicated by the presence of dehydration. Income in the uppermost quartile of this population, independently of maternal education, was associated with 41% reduced risk of severe disease compared to the lowest quartile. In the logistic regression model the effect of maternal education remained high after adjustment for several confounders. Based on the concept that socioeconomic variables operate through a set of proximate variables it is contended that maternal education, independently of economic power, through its impact on disease from acute diarrhoea, favourably influences child survival.

This paper investigates variations in the strength and structure of familial association in neonatal mortality risks in four populations; Bolivia, Kenya, Peru, and Tanzania. Exploratory analyses of the structure of the familial association are presented for each population. Random effects logistic models are then used to estimate the strength of familial association in neonatal mortality risks using a standard set of control variables. The results suggest that the strength of familial association in neonatal mortality risks is quite similar in these four populations which would be consistent with a biological explanation for the association. However, some differences were found, particularly in the form of the association in Peru, which may suggest at least a small role of other factors.

Simple measures of the biological fitness of adult men aged 25–65 years, inhabitants of the city of Wroclaw, Poland, were studied in two well-defined social groups: professionals and skilled workers. It was found that the manual workers, compared to professionals, have higher systolic and diastolic blood pressure, lower relative vital capacity, inferior flexibility of spine, poorer eye-hand co-ordination, and poorer hearing acuity. These social differences appear consistently at each age level between 25 and 65 years and tend to increase with age to the disadvantage of skilled workers.

Using lists of names of male personal telephone subscribers, isonymy was calculated within and between 29 contiguous areas in a north-to-south line extending 210 km south of Grindsted, Denmark. Each area shared some surname(s) with every other area. Isonymy was high across both the present and past borders of Denmark with Germany and was consistently lower in areas beyond 160 km south of Grindsted. Relative isonymy between areas was also smaller on average south of the present border than north of it, and smaller still for pairs of areas spanning the border. This is partly accounted for by decreases in isonymy with distance, but the slope of the logistic regression on distance is greater for the northern moiety than the southern one. Most of these findings can be traced to the influence of common surnames ending in ‘sen’, the distribution of which tends to correlate highly with isonymy. Such surnames tend to be of recent origin and to be very frequent and hence highly polygenic. Thus much of the heterogeneity is explained by surname history rather than genetic heterogeneity.

This paper examines the association between infant mortality of the first born and subsequent children using data from rural Bangladesh collected during the period 1971–82. It shows that birth spacing and age of mother at the time of the second birth are important predictors of the survival status of the first child. The findings are discussed in terms of policy implications.

The study examines the impact of body build on differential fertility patterns in 93 !Kung San and 85 Kavango females from northern Namibia. In both groups shorter females had more offspring, but also more dead offspring, than taller females. The interaction between body weight and fertility was different in both groups and may be due to different nursing behaviour. There was a positive relationship between the typical pedomorphy and fertility in the! Kung San, and directional selection processes may be important.

South Korea and Cuba are dissimilar in religion, economy, culture and attitudes toward premarital sexual relations. In 1960, Korea instituted a national family planning programme to combat rapid population growth. Cuba explicitly rejected Malthusian policies, but made family planning universally available in 1974 in response to health needs. Both countries have undergone rapid fertility declines and today have less than replacement level fertility. Both countries have also used a similar mixture of methods, including a high prevalence of female sterilisation. Abortion has played a major role in the fertility decline of both countries, rising in the first half of the fertility transition and then falling, although remaining a significant variable in the second half. It is concluded that access to contraception, voluntary sterilisation, and safe abortion has a direct impact on fertility and has been associated with a rapid fall in family size in two very different countries.

This paper examines the effects of exposure to mass media messages promoting family planning on the reproductive behaviour of married women in Nigeria using cross-sectional data. Longitudinal data are also used to ensure that exposure to media messages pre-dates the indicators of reproductive behaviour. Cross-sectional analysis suggests that: (1) contraceptive use and intention are positively associated with exposure to mass media messages, and (2) women who are exposed to media messages are more likely to desire fewer children than those who are not exposed to such messages. Similarly, analysis of the longitudinal data shows that exposure to mass media messages is a significant predictor of contraceptive use. Thus, exposure to mass media messages about family planning may be a powerful tool for influencing reproductive behaviour in Nigeria.

This paper reviews the historical development of the IUD, describing the challenges and successes, and attempts to offer a balanced perspective for family planning service workers today. Modern IUDs are an important component of family planning services and an excellent contraceptive choice for properly screened women, providing contraception that is safe, effective, long lasting and cost effective. Potential research strategies for the future are also discussed.