Female education and its impact on fertility

Abstract

The fertility gap between women with primary vs no education widens as incomes increase, but decreases at higher (secondary vs primary) education levels. Educated women are more physically capable of giving birth than uneducated women; but want fewer children and control birth better. Educated women provide better care at home, thus increasing the value of their children’s human capital and reducing the need for more children. At relatively early stages of a country’s development, educated women adopt modern birth control methods more often than uneducated women. ELEVAToR PiTCh