Date from the Census Fertility Reports are used to investigate social and regional variations in family size in the Republic of Ireland. Although Ireland is noted for its high level of fertility, average family size declined by approximately 10% between 1946 and 1971. There are distinct socioeconomic variations in family size in that Roman Catholic family size is greater than that of non-Catholics and the middle classes have the smallest families within each of the religious groups. There are also marked regional differences in family size. In 1946, there was a clear division between the west coast counties with the largest families and the east coast conties with the smaller families. By 1961 and 1971 this pattern had become less clearly demarcated and areas with relatively large families were found in most parts of the country. It is suggested that regional variations in family size can be influenced by a variety of factors, such as differences in religious affiliation, occupation, infant mortality and the degree of selection through emigration. Of these factors, it is found that in both 1946 and 1971 variations in occupation were most strongly related to family size and it appears that economic and occupation changes within Ireland have brought about the changing regional pattern of family size.

Earlier studies have queried whether divorce was associated with childlessness. Evidence from surveys of broken marriages passing through the divorce courts of England and Wales indicates that infertility and divorce are not related in the way supposed. When the duration of de facto marriage is controlled, divorcing couples have a higher rate of fertility than that found within those who remain married. The former are also more likely to have a larger family size within the same period of time. Similar findings emerge from data relating to broken marriages resorting to the magistrates' courts. These results are partly a consequence of the trend whereby working-class marriages—with their earlier start of a family and larger completed family size—form an increasing proportion of all divorcing couples.

Survey results showed that within a divorcing population a shorter period of cohabitation resulted in a higher level of infertility. High infertility rates were also associated with later age at marriage and high social class. Current trends suggest that an increasing proportion of divorcing couples will be childless. It is concluded that there is need for a deeper knowledge of possible relationships, and their causes, in this and other areas of married life.

Discussion and decision-making amongst Wessex women who obtained an induced abortion at two centres are studied. The most important discussants were family doctors, boy-friends, girl-friends, husbands, mothers and pregnancy counsellors. In the majority of key discussions which occurred the patient had been able to discuss the pregnancy fully, had a sympathetic reception and met a discussant who was favourable to her having a termination. However, younger patients were less likely to have such an experience and were later in arriving at their abortion decision and were more prone to uncertainty. It is argued that alternative counselling and referral systems need to be developed for younger patients with unplanned pregnancies who may request abortion.

p. 95 Wishik (1973) should read Wishik & Chen (1973)

p. 103 Wishik S.E. (1973) should read Wishik, S.E. & Chen, K-H. (1973)

At a time when abortion was not readily available, among married women over half of unintended pregnancies occurred with no use or discontinued use of contraception. Many of these contraceptive drifters had prior experience with effective contraception. Contraceptive drifting was more common for low parity births. Different characteristics differentiated drifters from contraception failures in low- (1–2) and high- (3+) parity women. Among low-parity women, more drifting was found where the husband was enthusiastic about having the child, the woman's education or occupation was low, the husband's occupation was craftsman or operative, his education was low or his income was high. Among high-parity women, drifting was more common for white mothers, those with a previous marriage or a child by another father, or for mothers or fathers with low education. Policy implications of these findings are discussed.

A time-dependent model of the probability of sexual intercourse, where the probability increases as the time from last intercourse increases, can produce waves in the expected frequency of sexual intercourse on the various dates of the menstrual cycle. These waves occur when the time-dependent model is linked with a period of abstinence, such as is usually found in most societies during the time of the menses. Previously, such waves have been attributed to cyclic hormonal changes in women without considering the full implication of a time-dependent model of sexual intercourse.

A study of the factors involved in delay amongst a group of Wessex women obtaining induced abortions is reported and the importance of age is stressed. Only 47% of women aged 17–18 years obtained their operation before 12 weeks gestation compared with more than 70% of women of other age groups. The implications of this for the health of these women is discussed and the case stated for the development of adequate sex education, birth control and early abortion services orientated towards late teenagers.

Summary From a survey conducted in the Irish Republic, data on ideal family size are given. Irish wives have high family size preferences, the overall mean ideal family size being 4.3 children. The Irish data are compared with American and western European; they show that the ideals of wives in Ireland are significantly higher than in these other countries. The concept of ideal family size appears to possess validity in its own right, and is not solely a rationalization of actual fertility experience.

In this survey of attitudes towards permanent contraceptive methods, four groups were studied: (A) men having undergone a vasectomy 12 months previously (n = 61); (B) men currently attending for vasectomy (n = 58); (C) female partners of men currently undergoing vasectomy (n = 60); and (D) women undergoing sterilization by tubal ligation (n = 52). All patients completed a questionnaire which included questions on the reasons for selecting their chosen method, and attitudes towards permanent methods and hypothetical pills and injectable contraceptives for men. Results showed that contraception was generally regarded as a mutual responsibility. This attitude was more pronounced in the vasectomy groups than among the sterilization women. Generally favourable reactions were elicited with respect to vasectomy, although substantial proportions expressed a preference for alternative methods (40%). Women undergoing sterilization exhibited predominantly negative attitudes towards this procedure. The implications of these findings, in terms of enhancing the acceptability of new male methods and improving subsequent adjustment to currently available permanent methods, are discussed.

Among a sample of 601 married men, whose wives are in the reproductive ages, religious affliation is strongly related to opinions about the permissibility of abortion under varied circumstances and Canadian abortion law. Education and other influences are altered when the effects of religion are included but some differentials persist within religious groupings. These suggest that secular trends towards increasing levels of education may tend to narrow religious-based differentials in abortion attitudes. An association of permissive attitudes towards abortion with use of highly effective contraceptive methods and with prior use of abortion is found.

This examination of the effects of marital status on repeat abortion assesses, by multiple classification analysis, the importance of a set of predictors of repeat abortion (age, education, occupation, residence, religion, social support for the abortion, attitudes towards abortion, ambivalence to the abortion, source of idea of the abortion, referral source, contraceptive use) in a clinic sample of 984 single, married and divorced women. The different results for the three categories of women demonstrate the centrality of man–woman relations for an understanding of repeat abortion behaviour, and the need to orient future work on repeat abortion away from a predominant concern with contraception. Abortion can be understood only in terms of the cultural values and social practices which regulate different couple relations.

The recognition of which girls are at risk of becoming pregnant before the age of 16 years is of interest to legal, educational, social and medical services. In this paper a large amount of data, available for a total population of schoolgirls, has been used to show that prediction is indeed possible. It was found that compared to a group of girls matched on a number of sociodemographic characteristics, those who became pregnant during adolescence were more likely to have been academic underachievers at age 11, to have made an appearance in a juvenile court, and to have been referred to a child guidance or psychiatric clinic at an early age. Difficulties over matching also suggest that they are more likely to have five or more siblings, to be illegitimate and to have mothers who were themselves teenagers at the time of their daughter's birth.

Menstrual regulation (MR) was introduced as one of the components of the village-based family planning and meternal and child care programme initiated by the Cholera Research Laboratory, Dacca, in 70 villages in Matlab thana in October 1977. Social and demographic characteristics of the MR clients are compared with those of the users of other contraceptive methods offered by the programme. Reasons for pregnancy termination and the high continuation rates of contraceptive use after MR suggest that, in particular, the younger women are becoming increasingly conscious of controlling their childbearing and spacing their pregnancies.

This study examines the influence of religion on fertility among the Yoruba of Western Nigeria. There is a distinct differential in fertility by religion. Fertility is lower for Moslems than for Christians. The difference is attributed to the traditional characteristics of Moslems as opposed to the relatively modern characteristics of Christians. For example, Moslems have low education and low occupational status. Consequently, Moslems rather than Christians are more likely to observe longer periods of post-natal abstinence, and to experience higher pregnancy wastage and sterility rates.

Intentional childlessness in Britain has been investigated by means of a postal questionnaire survey of married women who to date had never had a child. These wives were categorized according to their fertility intentions. As a group the wives were well-educated, likely to be employed and to be married to men in professional or managerial occupations, although there were some with husbands in manual occupations. The main reason perceived by the wives for their decision not to have children was the value they placed on the freedom they consequently gained. A majority of the wives felt there were no disadvantages in remaining childless. The remainder who felt that there were disadvantages identified these as: missing the positive features of children; possible loneliness and lack of support in old age; feelings of deviancy; and economic and social discrimination resulting from their childlessness.

Women who bear a child in their teens differ in their childhood, adolescent and adult experiences from their peers who delay childbearing until later ages. Within the group of teenage mothers the background characteristics associated with and the consequences of pregnancy status at first birth are discussed.

This investigation traces the evolution of non-Maori fertility in New Zealand from 1860 to the mid-1970s. The fertility transition took place in four distinct stages, and socio-demographic factors of differing importance in fertility are suggested. During the period 1860–80, an initial decline in fertility was achieved by postponing the age of marriage. The second stage, of increasing control over fertility within marriage and postponement of marriage, ended gradually by the 1910s. Between the world wars and until the 1950s, fertility control within marriage became more universal. Finally, from the 1960s, fertility has declined as a result of many complex changes in social and economic spheres, the major social change with demographic implications being undoubtedly the new rolesof women.

This paper also deals with the changing pattern of fertility by using both the period and cohort rates of fertility.

This paper examines the current use of contraception among a sample of 6646 married women of reproductive age interviewed during 1972–73 in metropolitan and country areas of the state of New South Wales, Australia. The analysis shows that contraception is widely practised in all segments of the population, though to a lesser extent among the Catholic women and those born is southern Europe. In conjunction with now easily available induced abortion, this has resulted in a precipitous drop in the annual number of marital births.

In a sample of 260 married men in Shiraz, the relationship is studied of fertility to demographic, socioeconomic and psychosocial variables, the last measuring the perceived economic value of children. The number of children ever born is closely associated with duration of marriage, but socioeconomic variables also exert a significant influence, especially the wife's educational level. Recent fertility is more closely associated with age of wife, but also with ownership of modern goods which is also the major factor in current contraceptive use. The perceived value of children appears unimportant, negligible in recent fertility and contraceptive use, and only showing a slight positive relationship between expected reliance on children for support in old age and the number of children ever born.

Consultant gynaecologists in the Wessex Regional Health Authority were interviewed about their abortion work. Wide variations in attitudes and practice are evident. Whilst the consultants broadly refer to the same criteria in deciding whether to perform an abortion or not, the assessment they make of the relevance of these criteria is very much an individual matter.