POPLINE Article Titles:

[Between "pre-modern" and "post-modern"--formation of families in Austria, 1984 to 1990]

"This analysis provides an overview [of] forms of family formation behavior in Austria in the years 1984 to 1990. Using vital statistics data all women with a first birth in the years 1984 to 1990 were classified into three distinct groups according to their form of family formation behavior....The analysis indicates the highest proportions of unmarried mothers among young and poorly educated women. Moreover, the highest illegitimacy ratios are not found in urban areas. This type of family formation is particularly common in those alpine areas of Austria where having an illegitimate birth can be linked to a long standing practice. The high percentage of women who remain unmarried although they have a child, is therefore not a phenomenon of postmodernism, but a result of local tradition." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND FRE) (EXCERPT)

Population backward in literacy: problems and prospects.

"Inter-state literacy growth differences of all the 16 major states [in India] and inter-district and inter-sex disparities of literacy of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan are...reviewed in this paper based on age specific literacy rates of teen agers of rural areas of 1981 census." The importance of female education as part of programs to limit population growth is stressed. (EXCERPT)

Latin America: censal information about indigenous people.

This issue presents a selection of data on the indigenous populations of Latin America, taken from national censuses. The data are provided separately by country and are given in varying format depending on their availability and the way they were obtained in the countries concerned. In most cases, the data concern language spoken, age and sex distribution, and educational status. (ANNOTATION)

Income distribution and infant mortality.

"Comparing two countries in which the poor have equal real incomes, the one in which the rich are wealthier is likely to have a higher infant mortality rate. This anomalous result does not appear to spring from measurement error in estimating the income of the poor, and the association between high infant mortality and income inequality is still present after controlling for other factors such as education, medical personnel, and fertility. The positive association of infant mortality and the income of the rich suggests that measured real incomes may be a poor measure of social welfare....This paper considers and tests several possible explanations, such as the provision of medical services, the degree of urbanization, the extent of female literacy, and differences in the composition of births among different income groups. None of these factors adequately accounts for the positive association between the incomes of the rich and infant mortality." The geographical scope is worldwide. (EXCERPT)

[Risk factors for fetal malnutrition in a group of Guatemalan mothers and newborns]

Significant factors in the etiology of fetal malnutrition in nonpremature newborns were evaluated in Coban, a community in the central mountains of Guatemala. Infants with fetal malnutrition, also called intrauterine growth retardation, are born at term with a weight below the 10th percentile corresponding to their gestational age. Fetal malnutrition is of 2 kinds: type 1 (also called chronic fetal malnutrition or fetal stunting) in which infants are small but well proportioned, with small heads and length and weight below normal, and type 2 (also called acute fetal malnutrition or fetal wasting, in which the head size and length are normal but the weight is lower than normal. 306 of the 531 mothers who delivered at the Coban hospital between July 18-November 30, 1988 were included. Premature and multiple births and infants with congenital malformations or other pathologies were excluded. 105 of the 306 infants (34%) presented fetal malnutrition. It was type 1, fetal stunting, in 77% and type 2, fetal wasting, in 23%. Mean birth weights were 2984 gm for boys and 2932 gm for girls. There was no significant difference by sex in birth weight, fetal malnutrition, or fetal stunting. Mothers who identified themselves as Indians had infants of much lower average birth weight. 37.8% of Indian and 24.7% of Ladino newborns presented fetal malnutrition. Birth weight increased with parity through the 4th pregnancy. 47.6% of 1st vs. 29.4% of subsequent births presented fetal malnutrition. 47.6% of infants born to mothers 20 or younger vs. 29.3% of infants of mothers over 20 presented fetal malnutrition. Maternal anthropometric values significantly related to birth weight after controlling for the effect of race were puerperal weight, height, arm circumference, and skinfold thickness. 54% of the sample mothers had never attended school. Mothers who had never attended school had a higher proportion of children with fetal malnutrition of fetal stunting than mothers with some education. Low socioeconomic level was also correlated with fetal malnutrition. A direct correlation was observed between the number of prenatal consultations and birth weight. 10% of the children of nonprimipara mothers were born within 18 months of the older sibling. 42.9% of those children vs. 21.9% of infants born 18-23 months after the next older sibling suffered fetal malnutrition. The adjusted odds ratios for fetal stunting were significant only for socioeconomic and maternal nutritional values. The odds ratios for fetal wasting were significant for obstetrical characteristics including parity and birth interval. The results suggest that poverty, maternal malnutrition, and precarious living conditions over prolonged periods of time are related to chronic fetal malnutrition.

[The impact of family planning on indicators of social well-being]

The RAPID computer package was adapted to Mexican conditions and used to project the population through the year 2010 in order to gauge the significance of medium-term population growth for satisfaction of service requirements in health care, education, housing, and employment. 3 levels of effectiveness were assumed for the family planning (FP) program, which is the greatest single determinant of the rate of population growth at present. In option A, the program was assumed to remain at the 1980 level, with a total fertility rate of 4.0 through 2010. In option B, a relatively inefficient FP program was associated with a decline in the total fertility rate from 4.0 in 1980 to 2.71 in 2010. In option C, a successful FP program meeting all existing goals was associated with a decline in the total fertility rate from 4.0 in 1980 to 2.12 in 2010. In all 3 cases life expectancy was assumed to increase from 67.3 years in 1986 to 73.6 in 2010, and net emigration amounted to 105, 855 persons annually. According to options A, B, and C, the population in 2010 would amount to 148, 123, or 113 million, respectively. The total number of births in 2010 would vary from 4.1 million with option A to 2.6 million for B or 2.0 million with C. According to option A, children under 15, who comprised 44.2% of the population in 1980, would continue to account for almost 1/2 of the total population in 2010. According to option C, however, 69% of the population would be of working age. The number of public sector physicians required to provide 1 physician/1283 persons, the level of 1980, would be 115,000 for option A, 96,000 for option B, or 88, 000 for option C. To continue to provide 1 hospital bed/1202 persons in 2010 as in 1980, 27,312 more beds would be required for option A than for option C. In 2010, 21.5 million children would be enrolled in primary school according to option A vs. 11.7 million for option C. 249,742 fewer teachers would be required in 2010 according to option C to meet the 1980 ratio of 1 teacher/39 students. The number of new housing units constructed annually would vary from 1.5 million for option A to 1.1 million for option C. In 2010, 1,238,349 new jobs would be needed annually according to option A vs. 560,210 according to option C.

Attitudes towards cohabitation and marriage in Canada.

Living arrangements of people changed significantly in the 1980s. To greater understand these changes, one must examine how attitudes toward cohabitation and marriage are formed, and what are their correlates. To that end, this paper explores attitudes toward cohabitation and marriage in Canada, focusing upon the structural variables molding these attitudes. In Canada, marriage age has increased over the years accompanied by a compensating increase in the prevalence of cohabitation. 5315 women of all marital statuses in reproductive years 18-49 were interviewed in the random telephone-based 1984 Canadian Fertility Survey. Analysis of the survey reveals that attitudes are significantly related with age, marital status, place of residence and work status, educational attainment, region, religion, religiosity, and the total number of children desired. Place of residence and work status are insignificant in shaping attitudes. Moreover, urbanization has little correlation with the molding of one's views on marriage and cohabitation. Of greater importance are factors associated with rural, small town, or urban environments, including educational attainment, religiosity, and the desired number of children.

Marital status: association with social and economic circumstances, psychological state and outcomes of pregnancy.

The authors examined the association of marital status with economic, social, and psychological factors and with the outcomes of pregnancy (defined as onset of labor, type of delivery, live and stillbirths, and birthweight). The study population comprised 1431 white women who were consecutively booked for antenatal care. Birth registrations were inspected. Of 278 women who were unmarried during pregnancy, 61% were cohabiting, 26% were living with adults other than the father, and 13% were living alone. Compared with the married women, unmarried women overall were, on the average, younger, less educated, of lower social class, in poorer economic circumstances, more dependent on state support, and were less satisfied with their living arrangements. Regardless of age and social class, they were less likely to have planned the pregnancy, were more likely to smoke and drink, to book later for antenatal care, and to miss more appointments. In general, unmarried women were more likely to have some indication of depression and to experience more serious life events during the pregnancy. Controlling for age and social class, the categories "married", "cohabiting", and "on their own" showed significant trends from best to worst. Those living with other adults other than the father showed intermediate results. There were no significant effects of marital status controlled for age and social class, and associated social, economic, and psychological circumstances on pregnancy outcomes. 41% of births to women on their own, 35% to women living with other adults, and 11% to women cohabiting during pregnancy were registered by only 1 parent. It is possible that a continuation of the poor quality of life observed among unmarried women during pregnancy could affect the later wellbeing of their children. (author's modified)

Achievement of reproductive intentions in Sri Lanka, 1982-1985: a longitudinal study.

The achievement of reproductive intentions of Sri Lankan women was examined by using longitudinal data for the period 1982-85. Aggregate consistency between reproductive intentions and behavior was almost perfect, but at the individual level there were inconsistencies. Among those who wanted to have no more children, 23% reported a birth in the intersurvey period of 3 years and 2 months, while failures to have a wanted birth stood at 36%. There was a clear declining trend in the former type of inconsistencies in Sri Lanka, but the latter type has increased, possibly due to a continuing decline in family size ideals or due to deferred childbearing. Even though inconsistencies existed, expressed fertility intentions in 1982 significantly influenced the fertility outcome. The study also has a methodological focus on whether to include sterilized women when fertility intentions and behavior are examined longitudinally, but no specific problems were found with their inclusion. Results indicate that, apart from the intention variable, age, marital duration, family size, and education of husband and wife variables all influenced fertility in the followup period. (author's)

The World Bank atlas 1991.

The 1991 World Bank Atlas provides 1990 statistics in 1 table for 185 countries on the following: gross national product (GNP) and rate, population and growth rate, GNP/capita and real growth rate, agriculture's share of gross domestic product (GDP), daily calorie supply/capita, life expectancy at birth, total fertility rate (TFR), and school enrollment (%) and literacy (%). Charts in 6 colors depict GNP/capita, the population growth rate between 1980-90 and ranking by country, GNP/capita growth rate between 1980-90 and ranking by country, GDP share in agriculture and ranking, daily calorie supply/capita in 1988 and ranking, life expectancy at birth and ranking, TFR and ranking, and illiteracy rate in 1985 and ranking. The ranking is of GNP/capita from lowest to highest by country against the indicator and the trend line.

The role of adolescent fathers in parenting and childrearing.

Many professionals believe teenage fathers' stereotypes such as stud, Don Juan, macho, cool, and absent father, yet data do not support them. Teenage fathers and mothers have known each other for 1-4 years and care for each other; many fathers accompany mothers to prenatal visits. Teenage fathers and mothers do tend to fail as parents, however. Parental interference limits access to their child. Dropping out of school, low income, ignorance of child rearing and child development, and stress that comes with adolescence and with early fatherhood also contribute to parenting failure. Teenage fathers are as ignorant about sex and sexuality as young mothers. For example, about 67% of all sexually active teenagers rarely, if ever, use contraception. 41% do not know that either they could impregnate someone or become pregnant. Research shows that upcoming fatherhood generates stress for teenage fathers. They are concerned about financially supporting the mother and child, completing school, the health and welfare of mother and child, and taking care of the child. Most research indicates that fathers really do want to be involved with the child. Children of teenage fathers who do take part in child rearing and whose mothers have a positive perception of the father's support exhibit better cognitive ability and behavior that in those whose fathers do not contact their children and mothers think negatively of the father's support. Children of teenagers are more likely to be premature, abused, and poor; to die before age 1; have several health problems; develop behavioral/emotional problems; and to become teenage parents. Outreach programs to teenage fathers show that they are very willing to become competent and caring parents. Methods to attract teenage fathers include going to schools and recreational facilities, public service spots on TV, and newspaper interviews with teenage fathers.

A primer on population and development in the 90s: the Philippines.

The aim of this summary paper is to briefly capsule the issues in population and development in the Philippines and appeals to a wide audience. The introduction reveals that the birth rate has remained high due to cultural norms for large family size and a declining mortality rate since the 1930s. Because of the distribution of the population, a decline in birth rates will not be reflected in population leveling off or decline for some time. Population pressure will result in slower progress and lost opportunities for improving people's lives. The discussion of the interaction between population and development highlights the quality versus quantity distinction and the "vicious cycle of poverty." Basic facts are presented about population growth, population change, population structure and dependency ratio, the levels and trends in fertility, and population and economic well being. The total fertility rate is 3.9 and the average family size includes 4 children. Fertility rates are higher among rural women; in some regions such as Bicol and Eastern Visayas family sizes may be >6 children. Tables on the mean number of children by urban/rural status and region and level of education and region are presented. The following interrelationships are introduced: population and employment, population and education, population and health, population and environment, population and migration and urbanization, and population and housing. The Philippine Population Program directs efforts at responsible parenthood and population and development. Family planning (FP) services are provided to married couples of reproductive ages; there is training of program workers, provision of supplies, and research. The FP program has been affected by the transfer of institutional responsibility over FP coordination and reduced funding support. New acceptors and current users have not resulted in sustained growth. Efforts are being made at integration of population and development in maternal and child health programs, the school system, training of managers, provision of workshops for political personnel, environmental projects, and mobilization of women and the community. Some gaps and needs are identified as well as challenges for the 1990s.

The influence of education, age at sexual debut, use of intrauterine device and number of sex partners on tubal factor infertility.

Epidemiologies compared data on 122 women who were 1st diagnosed with tubal infertility with data on women of 118 couples who were diagnosed with another type of infertility to examine the effect of IUD use, number of sexual partners, age at 1st intercourse, educational level, and contraceptive use. In 1982, they visited the Gynecology Department at Rikshospitalet in Oslo, Norway which 1st diagnosed them with infertility. Women who suffered from tubal adhesions due to pelvic infection has 1st intercourse at a significantly younger age than those who did not have such adhesions (17.7 years vs. 18.8 years; p<.01). They also had a longer period between 1st intercourse and 1st attempt at pregnancy (7.2 years vs. 5.9 years). Women who did not have any adhesions were significantly more likely to have had 1 sexual partner than were those who had adhesions (31% vs. 13%; p=.001). 49% of women with tubal pathology had ever used and IUD compared with only 30% of those with no tubal pathology. This relationship remained strong even among women who had only 1 sexual partner (56% vs. 27%). Education was positively related to age for 1st intercourse, marriage, pregnancy attempt, and infertility. It is not known whether this was due to higher prevalence among the educated or more educated people seek treatment for infertility. In the multivariate analysis, only number of sex partners and former IUD use remained significant risk factors for tubal factor infertility. Odds ratios (ORs) for number of sex partners were 2.2 for 3-5 partners, 1.9 for 6-10 partners, and 6.5 for >10 partners. The OR for IUD use was 1.9. These results suggest the need for more public information stressing that infertility is another risk factor of unprotected intercourse. Increased knowledge of behavioral patterns and risk factors allow for better reproductive planning an prevention of undesired hazards.

Determinants of family planning acceptance and fertility change in Kerala: a study on inter-district variations.

The impact of various developmental factors on contraceptive acceptance and fertility in Kerala state, India, is explored. Factors examined include infrastructure developments such as the expansion of medical and family planning services and improved roads and transport facilities. Socioeconomic factors including income, occupation, educational status, religion, women's age at marriage, infant mortality, birth rate, and acceptance of sterilization and IUDs are considered. The focus is on differences among the various districts in the state. (ANNOTATION)

Women's employment, education, and contraceptive behaviour in Kinshasa.

Kinshasa, Zaire is the setting for this study of the relationship among women's employment, education, and contraceptive behavior. Levels of contraceptive use are identified for both traditional and modern methods among women who are self-employed in the informal sector and those who are employed by others. 2400 reproductive age (13-39 years) women were surveyed in 1990 based on a sample stratified by socioeconomic level and employment. The modern sector was oversampled. The theoretical framework discussed relies on the ideas of Easterlin on supply and demand for children and motivation for fertility regulation. The findings on contraceptive prevalence show that 80% of every sexually active women used some form of contraception, but 44% at the time of the survey used contraceptives. 5 out 6 used traditional methods. The principal modern method of the 7% using was a condom. There is a rise in lifetime and current contraceptive use with a rise in education level among the nonemployed and the self-employed, but not among employees. Employees have the highest levels of lifetime contraceptive use, followed by self-employed and then nonemployed women. Employed women are more likely to currently use contraception than nonemployed. Employed with secondary or primary educational levels are more likely than self-employed or nonemployed to use a modern method. In the weighted logistic regression analysis increased schooling beyond the primary level is associated with a significantly greater likelihood of using any method of contraception. Employees followed by self-employed have a greater likelihood of contraceptive use. Between ages 25-34 the self-employed are more likely to use contraception than employees. With increasing age up to 25 years, there is greater likelihood of contraceptive use, but the sign changes to negative after 25 years. Women are more likely to use contraceptives if not in school, and never married in the younger age groups, and having migrated to Kinshasa in the past 10 years. Higher parity, and socioeconomic status with variation by age, are associated with greater use. Ethnic differences reveal the Kwili Kwango more likely to use contraception than Bakongo, but all other ethnic groups are less likely. University women are more likely to use modern methods. The links to school are strongest among those 25-34 for modern method use. Reduced form equations were generated with similar results to the logit regressions. The variables with the most consistent results were the desire to not have child now, the number of children ever born, and schooling level. Policy needs to focus on the unmarried and students to increase use.

An analysis of the life cycle of Chinese women.

The authors analyze the life cycle of women in China. Data are from surveys conducted in 1986 and 1987 and concern women's educational status, economic participation, marital status, physiological changes, reproductive behavior, and years lived as widows. The implications of changing life cycles for social and population policy development are described. (ANNOTATION)

Evaluation of social marketing of oral rehydration therapy.

Researchers interviewed 149 mothers from the slums of East Delhi, India who knew about oral rehydration therapy (ORT) to evaluate the effectiveness of the Ministry of Health's mass media campaign to promote ORT use during diarrheal episodes. As of September 1991, India has distributed oral rehydration solution (ORS) packets free of charge. The Ministry of Health has conducted the campaign since 1989. They compared the 59 mothers who watched the television (TV) ads with celebrities delivering simple and clear images to the 90 mothers who had received ORT messages from other sources such as health workers. Mothers who watched the TV ads were considerably more likely to know how to correctly prepare ORS than those who learned about ORT from other sources (62.7% vs. 37.7%; p<.01). No significant difference in use of ORT at home between the 2 groups existed, however (69.49% and 53.33%, respectively). Yet when the mothers were divided by educational status, they learned that TV ads were more likely to teach educated mothers how to correctly prepare and to use ORT at home than health staff (81.5% vs. 35.5% and 81.5% vs. 41.9%, respectively; p<.01). Most mothers (88.13% and 81.11%, respectively) in both groups still fed their child during diarrheal episodes. TV ads and health staff were equally effective for both educated and uneducated women. These results showed that social marketing of ORS packets via the TV ads was successful in increasing ORT acceptability, knowledge, use, and especially among educated mothers. Similar studies in Bangladesh showed that education incites changes in attitude and behavior of mothers which makes them more receptive of new knowledge and modern medicine. Another possibility for the education difference may be that TV was better able to interest educated mothers than health staff.

The consequences of delayed childbearing on first child's environmental quality.

1987 Demographic and Health Surveys data on 9971 mothers living in Indonesia were analyzed to examine the effects of delayed childbearing on the environmental quality of the 1st born child. The age at 1st marriage and age at 1st birth rose for successive marriage cohorts, e.g., the mean mother's age at 1st marriage was 18.15 years for women in the 1968-72 marriage cohort compared with 20.55 years for those in the 1983-87 cohort. The corresponding ages for 1st birth were 20.06 and 21.67 years. Within marriage cohorts, parents who delayed childbearing were more likely to be highly educated, exposed to mass media, worked before marriage, and had a better job than those who did not delay childbearing. Their children had a tendency to live in homes with electricity, a potable water source, quality flooring, and better toilets than those born to parents who did not delay childbearing. The positive social and physical effects of delayed childbearing held true across marriage cohorts. Moving across successive cohorts, it was found that the percentage of children born to very educated parents who were exposed to mass media, worked prior to marriage, and had a better job increased. This showed improvement in social environmental quality over time, but the only improvement in physical environment quality was drinking water quality. The government of Indonesia should concentrate its efforts on improving social environmental quality instead of physical environmental quality. Further research should also examine how delayed childbearing can improve the social and physical quality of both mother and children. It would be best if researchers would all use the same measurements of quality.

1990 population and housing census: Changwat Chai Nat.

This is one in a series of reports presenting results from the 1990 census of Thailand at the provincial (changwat) level. This report concerns the province of Chai Nat and includes data on sex distribution, households, age distribution, marital status, religion, handicap, birth place, internal migration, fertility, contraceptive practice, language, educational status, labor force activity, occupation, and housing. (ANNOTATION)

Are "worlds of pain" crosscultural? Korean working class marriages.

Based on the 1976 Lillian Rubin study of working class-marriages, described by the author as worlds of pain, a study of Korean working-class marriages reveals similar results. The Rubin study was based on 50 in-depth interviews with white, working class families in suburban California. The study of Korean working-class marriages involved 32 couples from Seoul. The couples ranged in age from 23 to 37 for wives and 28-40 for husbands. Their mean ages were 31 for wives and 34 for husbands. They had been married from 2 to 13 years with a median of 7 years. 60% of the couples had 2 children, 34% had 1, 6% had 3. The husbands had 11.5 years of education, while the wives had 10.9. The husbands all worked as blue-collar workers and 70% of the wives worked outside the home. 13 couples lived with their parent in-laws and 19 lived alone. Of those with parent in-laws, 7 had the husband's single parent and 6 had both of the husband's parents. The parents of the wives traditionally live with their own eldest son. The husbands and wives were interviewed separately with the wife being interviewed 1st. The interviews were tape-recorded and confidentiality was promised beforehand. Open-ended questions were asked about adjustment to family life, conjugal power, decision making, disclosure of affection, communication, conflict resolution and sexual adjustment. The results indicated that even across cultures, husbands and wives behave and have similar needs. Adjustment to parent in-laws was the most difficult part of the marriage for the wives. Husbands and wives maintained traditional family roles concerning decision making and sexual behavior. Husbands were considered active, women passive in most aspects of family life. This study points to the need to include outside factors when determining marital adjustment scales. In addition to ethnic and religious factors, finances and living arrangements are also important factors in assessing marriages.

Reproductive and socioeconomic determinants of child survival: confounded, interactive, and age-dependent effects.

Data on 9185 births that occurred between 1958-73 in 26 villages in Ludhiana District in Punjab state, India were analyzed to determine how reproductive and socioeconomic factors influence child mortality. Specifically confounded, interactive, and age-dependent effects were examined. Overall, only reproductive factors were associated with neonatal mortality. These factors included maternal age (p<.05 for <20 year old mothers and p<.1 for <35 year old mothers) and =or< 15 month birth interval (p<.05). =or< 15 month birth interval also affected 2-6 month old mortality (p<.05) as well as mother's education ([<.05). The socioeconomic factors of being a girl (p<.05), lower caste Sikh (p<.05), and having a low income (p<.05) were all positively associated with child mortality beginning at 7 months. The nutrition, medical, and family planning interventions of the Narangwal project (1968-74) improved child survival for only =or> 7 month old children born during or after 1963 (p<.05). 0-36 month old children born to mothers with no education were less likely to surmount the negative effects related to a young mother, high birth order, short previous birth intervals, and a previous sibling death (p<.05). The low status groups were just as likely to exhibit poor reproductive patterns as were the high status groups, but the low status groups tended to experience higher mortality because they did not have access to the resources needed to over come the negative effects of the same high risk reproductive patterns as did the high status groups.

Education and timing of parenthood among Canadian women: a cohort analysis.

The proportional hazards model was used to analyze birth history data of 4504 18-49 year old women living in Canada to examine the degree to which education, net of other factors, affected the rate at which women from different age cohorts (18-29, 30-39, and=or> 40) had a 1st birth. Overall 33% of the women had not yet experienced 1st birth. Younger women were more likely not to have experienced a 1st birth than older women (61%, 18%, and 7%, respectively; p<.001). Education had a significant negative effect on the risk of 1st birth for women of all age cohorts (p<.001). The overall relative risk for women with <9 years of education was 3.41 and for those with 9-13 years was 2.19. The effect of education was greatest in the younger cohorts and declined gradually among the older cohorts. For example, 18-29 year old women with <9 and 9-13 years of formal schooling were at a 514% and 234% greater risk of 1st birth, respectively, than were those with 14 years of formal schooling. The corresponding figures for 30-39 and=or> 40 year old women were 179% and 98% and 167% and 75%, respectively. Education was the most important determinant of parenthood timing. The next greatest predictor of timing of 1st birth was work status. Working women were at greater risk of 1st birth than were nonworking women (p<.001). Specifically 18-29, 30-39, and=or> 40 year old working women were at 462% (p<.001), 145% (p,.01), and 18% (p<.001) greater risk. These results showed that higher education postponed the timing of parenthood both in the past and today and that its effect was indeed direct. The greater effect of education among younger women coincided with the changing nature of formal education in modern Canada.

The social context of fertility decline in Thailand.

Thailand's fertility decline was rapid, and the social forces behind it are not well understood. The objective of this paper is to examine the fertility transition in terms of the social context of decision making and individual characteristics. Structural determinants of the social context in the multilevel models are theoretically designed to offset the ad hoc selection of indicators. Data were obtained from the micro data files of the 1970 and 1980 Census of Thailand by province and matched with own children data. Aggregate and individual level analyses were conducted. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to assess the effects of social context on individual fertility. The childbearing period for women was 15-44 years. Contextual indicators were an index of women status (maternal and paternal educational level and age disparity between couples), and index of children roles (school enrollment and not in the labor force), and the percentage of never married 20-24 year old women and the infant mortality rate (Brass method). The spatial pattern of fertility levels and decline is characterized and the components of fertility decline are identified. Marital structure changes for women 25-34 years affected 90% of the change in total fertility; the changing proportions married varied by region, with Bangkok, central, and southern regions showing the greatest change. The broad pattern remained the same by region. There was a small shift to later age at marriage and a decline in older ages' childbearing. Changing educational composition had little effect on fertility transition. The multilevel models used a dummy variable for denoting time period. There were 3 models and 3 parity goups per model. The effects were negative in the model with the period variable for all parities and greatest for parity >2. The log odds of the probability of having >2 vs. 0 children was reduced between 1965-69 and 1975-79. Women were less likely to proceed with a 2nd birth in the later period, and women in middle and later childbearing were less likely to space births closely together. When controlling for contextual variables, the sign changed for women with 1 child. The results show that social context is a significant factor in fertility decline, independent of, and in addition to, individual characteristics. Provinces that had rapidly improved the status of women were more likely to have lower fertility regardless of individual characteristics. The effects of women's status on fertility did not vary across levels of individual social position.

Critical observations on the functionality of certain regional inequality indicators relating to economic and demographic variables: analysis by simulation.

Indexes are often used to highlight regional differentials in economic, demographic, and social phenomena within nations. While facilitating interregional comparison, these indexes remain flawed. Of particular concern to this paper is the lack of index independence on the number of regions within a given country. This paper discusses the coefficient of variation, Shannon's entropy index according to Theil's model, and the Gini ratio of concentration. The author then addresses the lack of independence, provides a way to analyze the problem, and shares the results of a simulation with sociodemographic and economic information. Data are from Italy for the 1981 census period. The author sees no need to abandon use of these indexes, and hopes that his study will instead stimulate research for a truly pure index. Practitioners may also benefit from using corrective measures suggested in the text. Questions remain on the impact of varied physical shapes of states.

The characteristics of private vs. public sector contraceptive users in Indonesia.

In 1987, data on 11,884 15-49 year old women from 14,141 households living in 20 provinces of Indonesia were analyzed to compare contraceptive use dterminants between women using private sector (self-reliant) family planning services and those using public sector services. The p value for all significant associations was p<.05. Young women were more likely to currently use or have ever used contraceptives than were older women, e.g., 60.8% or 30-34 year olds were currently using contraceptives compared with only 44.8% of 40-44 year olds. The proportion of never users tended to decrease as the number of children increased. For example, 90.4% of women with no children did not use contraceptives compared with 24.7% for women with 3 children. Religion had the 3rd greatest effect on contraceptive used especially among =or> 40 year old women. Hindu women were more likely to currently use or have ever used contraceptives and Muslim women were less likely to do so. Living in rural areas had a significant positive association with contraceptive use, possibly due to concerted efforts to reach rural women. Women's educational status also was positively related to contraceptive use. Even though wealth was a weak determinant of contraceptive use, it was a key determinant for those women attending a self-reliant clinic. This indicated that the government accomplished its goal of having women who can afford contraceptives attend the private sector clinics. Age had a significant negative effect on contraceptive use among self-reliant clients. Religion was positively related to contraceptive use. Parity was only significant among 35-49 year old women and the direction was negative for self-reliant users. Women's education was only significant among 25-34 year old women. Real income levels should increase substantially to induce more people to use private sector services.

Population growth and movement in Pakistan: a case study.

Significant development-related investments were made in the 1980s to improve conditions in Pakistan. While strides were made, however, toward improving education, literacy, health care, sanitation, and infrastructure, potentially realizable gains have negated by rapid population growth and rural-urban migration. Rapid population growth persists in Pakistan through the society's continued adherence to traditional beliefs, values, and behaviors. Suffering from high fertility and overpopulation, Pakistan's population has also been slow to make the transition to modernity. Where antiquated gender roles and attitudes toward marriage, education, and desired family size persist, family planning efforts will fail. Social change must take place, and include general acceptance of both the modern state and the need for civic responsibility. Particularly central to continued high fertility are the preeminence of the mosque over an illegitimate national government, and female illiteracy and lack of education. The state has not gained legitimacy sufficient to unseat the governing role of the mosque and family in determining the social value of children, reproductive behavior, and gender prejudices. To effectively implement and see through family planning interventions, the government must gain legitimacy, and encourage clerical and community leader collaboration in projects. Further, efforts must be made especially to increase literacy and the level of education of girls and women. Overwhelmingly, women in Pakistan tend to be illiterate and uneducated, with few alternatives to motherhood. Improving female education and literacy should therefore be a political imperative in attempting to curb fertility and population growth.

Workshop on breast-feeding and its effect on fertility in the Western Pacific Region.

The workshop on breast feeding and its effect on fertility fulfilled the objective of informing professionals and medical administrators about the progress of the 7 recent studies in the Western Pacific Region (WPR) of WHO. Results varied due to the definition of breast feeding as partial or exclusive and sampling technique differences. Workshops reviewed trends in WPR on prevalence and duration of breast feeding and its effects on fertility, identified ways in which breast feeding promotion can be integrated into training and health programs and provided discussion of country-specific problems and national guidelines for overcoming problems. The proceedings include summaries of country reports, research reports, and group discussions. Annexes supply a participant list, the agenda, selected background papers, a summary table of country reports, a list of scientific papers, and the Innocenti Declaration on the Protection, Promotion, and support of Breast Feeding. The patterns of breast feeding are 1 of several factors affecting fertility. The WHO guidelines on successful breast feeding, specifically on optimum maintenance of lactation, need to be emphasized in order to increase prevalence. The WHO Simplified Methodology is useful for estimating prevalence and duration of breast feeding and amenorrhea and for targeting special groups. The Australian and Chinese research when completed should provide more precise differences in feeding patterns and the relationship to amenorrhea. These longitudinal studies have isolated the following factors: urban/rural differences, age of the mother, education of the mother, ethnicity, and socioeconomic level and family planning (FP) methods used during breast feeding. Research was in progress in Macau and Hong Kong, Philippines, Korea, and Viet Nam. Empirical results show that 98% protection is achieved through night and day demand feeding without use of the pacifiers for the 1st 6 months, which diminishes thereafter. Exclusive breast feeding should be included in national FP strategy. Hospital practices and training of health workers needs to be improved through in-service training and curriculum changes. Infant and maternal benefits were also of importance. 10 conclusions and 10 guidelines are presented, beginning with breast feeding should be promoted for its nutritional, immunological, and other benefits.

Some comments on the demographic transition in Kerala.

Commentary is provided on the well-advanced state of demographic transition in Kerala state, India. Based on data from the Sample Registration System in 1980 in Ernakulam, Aleppuzha, and Palakkad districts and an ongoing study, DOFFIK, in Ernakulam, Palakkad, and Malappuram, the fertility level is at or below replacement (total fertility rate is 2, and birth rate 20). Unfortunately, the transition is unevenly distributed, family planning (FP) use is underestimated, the widespread FP use in the south includes 75% of nonusers who are <30 years, and "herd immunity" protects many children, and many pregnant women are not registered with a primary health care facility. Socioeconomic differentials in fertility are balanced. For example, in Ernakulam District, the average number of children/woman is 2.35 for scheduled castes, 2.37 for the Ezhawas, 2.42 for Christians, 2.45 for Muslims, 1.95 for the Nairs, and 2.29 for all others. Sterilization is also evenly distributed with 54% for Hindus, 51% for Christians, and 51% for Muslims. Mortality differential data were unavailable. The advanced demographic transition is attributed to transitions in education, health, land reforms, wage structure, employment structure, and FP which came later. Education provided access to public service employment. The new "reservation" policy which distributes jobs, admissions to schols, and government grants on the basis of ascribed rather than achieved status may affect the downward fertility trend. The author's concern is that not all sections of the population desire a "socially acceptable number of children," and that the FP programs should not be relaxed. A strong government program with free services in incentives is needed. Research on the education transition since 1950 is needed as well as research on the conomic, health, and FP transitions. Data collection needs to be expanded to include the private sector's contributions.

A multi-level analysis of the determinants of fertility in the four regions of Thailand.

A multilevel model of macro and micro variables is used to examine the fertility determinants in the 4 regions of Thailand. The level and pace of fertility decline has varied across regions. Fertility behavior is considered at parity 0, at parities 1-3, and among women with 4 children. Contextual level variables are the status of women, the value of children, infant mortality in 1970, and population pressure. Micro data were obtained from 1970 and 1980 census files for women 15-49 years matched with own children data (aged 1-4 years and born between 1975-79). In general, contextual variables were more important determinants at parity 1-3 and had no effect at parity 0, and individual differences were more important at parity 0. The findings in the regression analyses show consistent results with prior research: older ages effecting a decrease on fertility, migrants having fewer children, higher female education and higher occupational status of husbands lower fertility. When marriage status is controlled at parity 0 the relationship between individual variables and marriage shows sign changes and reduced effects. The effects of individual variables are strongest at parity 4 and over, but affect all parities. Variations between regions on individual variables are small. Contextual variables show less consistency in results. Status of women results show significant negative effects at parity 4 for the central and northern regions. At parity 1-3 the status of women with contextual variables shows status as an important determinant of fertility. Provinces with higher levels of education had lower fertility. The value of children is negatively associated with fertility. The effect is greatest for parity 1-3 women. The north shows significant relationships, while the other regions are inconsistent; the implications are discussed. Infant mortality is not related to fertility except at 0 parity in the north (positive relationship). Population pressure is related to lower fertility in the northeast and south; in the north the results are significant but the sign changes. Only with parity 4 in the south were family planning programs related to lower fertility (negative association); the results are positive in the north and northeast. The policy implications are that increasing the opportunities for women will have an impact on fertility, and fertility would be indirectly affected through improvements in women's status. Decentralization of policy making on fertility is needed along with awareness of the cultural and social environment.

The black population in the United States: March 1991.

"This report presents a statistical portrait of the demographic, social, and economic characteristics of [U.S.] Blacks based primarily on the March 1991 Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). Topics covered include population growth, marital status, family type and distribution, living arrangements of children, fertility, education, employment, unemployment, family income, earnings, and poverty status." (EXCERPT)

Socio-economic factors and family size as determinants of marital dissolution in Italy.

This is an analysis of marital dissolution in Italy, with a focus on the life events and socioeconomic factors that put individuals at high risk of a marital breakup. The author notes that Italian society still largely conforms to traditional conjugal models and attitudes toward cohabitation and divorce. "Women most exposed to the risk of marital disruption seem to be those who married very young, who have had no more than one child, who are better educated, who have full-time jobs and who reside in large towns in the north-west of Italy. In addition, a woman who cohabits with her partner before marrying him is more likely to separate than a woman entering marriage directly." (EXCERPT)

Geographical mobility: March 1990 to March 1991.

"This report provides detailed statistics on the geographical mobility of Americans, based upon data collected in the March 1991 Current Population Survey (CPS). Mobility status is determined by asking respondents if they were living in the same residence (house or apartment) one year earlier...." The data are presented by race and Hispanic origin, sex, age, educational status, and labor force status. (EXCERPT)

[The mortality of the young and excess mortality among women in Belgium around 1890: a regional approach]

Trends in differential mortality by sex are analyzed at the regional level in Belgium using data from official sources, including the 1890 census. The authors consider mortality differences by size and type of place of residence, with a focus on female mortality by education and type of economic activity. The results suggest that both the economic activity of children and urbanization had important impacts on regional mortality differences in nineteenth-century Belgium. (ANNOTATION)

[General census of population of the territory of Mayotte, August 1991]

Results from the 1991 census of the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte are presented. The data, which are provided separately for the whole territory and for each commune, concern age and sex distribution, marital status, occupation, educational status, language, employment, place of birth, place of residence, commuting, households, family characteristics, and housing. (ANNOTATION)

1990 population census of Japan. Volume 3: results of the second basic complete tabulation. Part 1: Japan.

"This report contains data for Japan from the Second Basic Complete Tabulation of the 1990 Population Census of Japan which was taken as of 1 October 1990....[The data concern] population by labour force status, employment status, industry (major groups), education, economic type of households, source of household income, commuting status of household members and so on." Similar data are provided by prefecture and municipality in the 47 additional publications that are also part of Volume 3. (EXCERPT)

Lone parenthood: gender differences.

Census data for 1991 and statistics from surveys conducted in 1987, 1988, and 1989 are used to examine one-parent families in Canada. The emphasis is on differences among households headed by women or men. Age differences, educational status, and income sources are examined. (ANNOTATION)

Selected urban population characteristics of Moscow.

"This paper investigates total and regional population characteristics in Moscow [Russia] during 1979-1989, specifically nationality, age, sex and education and their interrelationships. Population dynamics of Russians, Ukrainians, Jews, and, to a lesser extent, other groups are examined based on a regionalization scheme dividing the city into Inner Zone and Outer Zone [regions]. The same spatial framework is employed in an analysis of changes in the age and sex structures of the city's overall population, as well as in levels of education. Linkages between these characteristics and rates of housing construction, recent demographic history, and city migration policy are explored." (EXCERPT)

Determinants of IMR in very high infant mortality African countries.

Factors affecting infant mortality in selected African countries are reviewed. The author finds that low birth weight, fertility, immunization, female literacy rates, and nutritional status are all significant variables affecting infant mortality rates. Data are from official and other published sources. (SUMMARY IN HIN) (ANNOTATION)

[Demographic characteristics]

The general features, fertility, mortality, migration, and growth and structure of the population of the indigenous reservations of 4 districts in the commune of Temuco in region IX of Chile are described. Data from a 1988 census permitted estimation of fertility and mortality indicators using indirect methods. An estimated 80% of Chile's Mapuche population is concentrated in region IX. The population in reservations is believed to be more impoverished and have less favorable demographic indicators than the rest of the regional population or the national population. The average number of children/woman in the 4 reservations declined in all age groups between 1982-88, with the average number at 45-49 years falling from 5.30 to 4.64. The total fertility rate (TFR) estimated by the Brass method in 1988 was 3.9, a decline from 4.3 in 1982. The TFR in region IX was 3.8 in 1980-85 and 3.1 in 1987-88. The net reproduction rate in the 4 reservations declined from 1.89 in 1982 to 1.72 in 1988, compared with 1.30 for Chile in 1987. More educated women had smaller families. Life expectancy at birth was estimated at about 59 years for 1975-80 and 63 years for 1988. Life expectancy for men and women, respectively, was estimated at 68.1 and 75.1 years for 1985-90 for Chile as a whole, 67.3 and 72.5 for region IX, and 61.5 and 65.0 for the 4 reservations. The estimated infant mortality rate for 1985 was 45.4/1000 live births compared with 32 for region IX and 20 for Chile. Comparison of the total population of the 4 reservations according to census data for 1982 and 1988 indicates that 2159 fewer persons were counted in 1988. The 1982 total of 15,111 declined to 12,952 in 1988 instead of increasing to the projected total of 16, 523. An estimated 3571 persons were thus lost to migration. Young women appear to have been the most likely to migrate. the estimated 1988 crude birth rate in the 4 reservations of 24.98/1000 combined with the estimated crude death rate of 12.31/1000 to produce a natural increase rate of 12.67. The natural increase of region IX was estimated at 21/1000 for 1980-90. The lower increase in the 4 reservations is due to higher mortality, declining fertility, and especially to the effects of migration of young women. 32% of the 1988 population of the 4 reservations was <15, compared with 39% in 1982. The proportion aged 15-64 increased from 54% in 1982 to 58% in 1988. The age structure shows the effects of high but declining fertility and of significant emigration in the active age groups. There were 109 males/100 females in 1988 vs. 106/100 in 1982. In the 20-24 and 25-29 cohorts, respectively, there were 138 and 127/1000.

Family planning among Zambian males: differences between Catholics and non-Catholics.

In Africa men's participation in family planning (FP) is lacking with the result of high fertility and low contraceptive prevalence. Traditional fertility controls such as child spacing, postpartum abstinence, and prolonged breast feeding have waned. 85 male employees of the University of Zambia in Lusaka (38 Catholics and 47 Noncatholics) from an original sample of 100 respondents selected from a total of 1264 supporting staff were interviewed in 1986 to assess the difference between Catholics and non-Catholics regarding the use of and attitude toward FP. This urban sample resembled Lusaka's average population in basic socioeconomic characteristics. All were literate, and 60% had passed the Junior Secondary examination requiring 7 years of schooling. Only 20% of their wives had similar education, and 13% were employed. 55% were non-Catholics. The variables of religion and wife's education were significant, and so was FP use and religion. 82% of Catholics had never used FP, and 58% of them did not intend to use FP in the future (compared with only 49% of non-Catholics). 87% of both groups desired to have more FP information. 32% of non-Catholics often discussed FP with their wives vs. only 22% of Catholics. Government policy endorsed modern FP in Zambia for the sake of controlling fertility, however, Catholics were less likely to practice FP although 42% intended future use. Although the attitudes regarding FP did not differ significantly between the 2 groups the pronatalist stance of the Catholic church had to be taken into account for the design of FP programs.

The effect of cohort size on wages in Brazil.

"Baby booms are bad for baby boomer earnings." There seems to be good evidence that cohort size depresses the earnings of large cohorts. This evidence supports 1 leg of the "Easterlin hypothesis" of endogenous population cycles, and gives a normative edge to the effects of changing population growth rates. This paper presents evidence that recent large cohorts in Brazil are doing better than smaller ones. Not only is cohort size not negatively correlated with earnings, it is positively correlated with surprising strength. The cohort size effect is not due to industrial composition, regional differences, or time trends. While this finding is difficult to explain, it suggests that there may be more to the relationship between cohort size and earnings than is usually considered. (author's)

Changing patterns in reported sexual practices in the population: multiple partners and condom use.

This study examined whether the pattern of change with regard to condom use and multiple sexual partners is influenced by gender or educational level. Findings from data collected between 1987-90 concerning changes in condom use and multiple-partner activities are presented, and were based on telephone interviews with 9416 participants ages 18-44 who resided in central Scotland. The change in patterns over time were modelled into a multivariate logistic regression using a linear interactive modelling program. Several models which showed changes in the proportion of multiple-partner respondents and condom users yielded a complicated pattern of behavioral change in educational status and gender. There is a large difference in reported condom use and multiple sexual partners by gender, but the difference is decreasing over time. Better educated respondents increased their condom use while less educated respondents showed a decrease in the proportion of multiple partners. (author's)

Perceptions of malaria and ways of treating and preventing it in a rural area of The Gambia.

Local attitudes to malaria, its treatment, and prevention were studied among 652 adults who were randomly selected from 71 villages and hamlets in a rural area of the Gambia. Structured questionnaire and other anthropological methods were used for data collection. malaria has no specific name in this area; it is referred to commonly as "Fula Kajewo" (fula fever). Only 28% of the respondents knew that mosquitoes caused the disease. However, most people correctly believed that August-October are the main months of the transmission period. 86% of the study subjects were bed net users. The majority of nets were produced locally, usually white in color, and made of sheeting fabrics. Socioeconomic indicators such as education, income, occupation, and ownership of certain social status items had no significant relationship to net usage but ethnic group, age, and martial status showed positive relationships with net usage. Analysis of expenditure on mosquito coils indicated that nonusers of nets spend twice as much as users. Bed nets have been used for a long period of time in the study area; 98% of users saw their parents using them during their childhood. Of this group, 33% were age 50 or older and over 1/2 were Mandinkas. Local herbs and other practices are used to repel mosquitoes and to treat malaria. (author's)

The international human suffering index. [Wallchart].

The living conditions in 141 countries are rated to ascertain the extent of human suffering linked to population growth in most cases. The 1st index was issued in 1987 listing 130 countries. The indicators of living conditions include life expectancy, daily calorie supply, clean drinking water, infant immunization, secondary school enrollment, per capita gross national product, the rate of inflation, communications technology (number of telephones/1000 people), political freedom, and civil rights. Some governments provided questionable data such as the 100% secondary school enrollment reported by North Korea. Mozambique had the worst score just as in 1987 followed by Somalia, Afghanistan, Haiti, and Sudan, all with high rates of population growth. The countries in the lead with least suffering include Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, and Norway, all with low population growth. Extreme suffering prevails in 27 countries with 8% of the world's population or 432 million people: 20 in Africa, 6 in Asia, and Haiti in the Western Hemisphere. High suffering is widespread in 56 countries with 65% of the global population or 3.5 billion people: 24 in Africa, 16 in Asia, 15 in the Western Hemisphere, and 1 (Papua-New Guinea) in Oceania. In the previous index only 44 countries with 58% of the world's population were rated as having high suffering. Moderate suffering affects 34 countries with 11.8% of the world's population or 636 million people: 9 in Europe, 13 in Asia, 8 in the Western Hemisphere, 2 in Oceania, and the Seychelles and Mauritania, the only African countries. Minimal suffering occurs in 24 countries with 14.8% of the world's population or 797 million people. 17 are in Europe, 2 in Asia (Israel and Japan), 3 in the Western Hemisphere (Canada, US, and Barbados), and 2 in OCeania (Australia and New Zealand). In the 1987 index 27 countries with 21% of the world's population had the same score.

Geographic mobility of the very old: motives and explanations.

The 1984 and 1990 Longitudinal Study of Aging (LSOA) data were used to predict geographical mobility of the aged. LSOA was a national sample of 7341 respondents aged 70 and over in 1984 who reached the age of 76 and over by 1990. The responses of 3889 very old not institutionalized in 1990 were analyzed. Geographic mobility was measured by reinterviews in 1988 and 1990 concerning an intercounty move since the 1984 survey. Family structure was derived from 1984 measures of living arrangement, gender of children, and nearness to children. Socioeconomic status was determined using the 1984 family income and individual education variables. Logistic regression was used to test the nonmigrant vs. migrant behavior model. 14.8% of the sample migrated across county boundaries, and while affiliation migration reached 22% (nonwhite, lower home ownership, short community residence, living with spouse, more than an hour away from children), health, comfort, and economic security induced migration each scored 17-19%. Health (18%) did not prove the be the dominant motive for migration. Instrumental disability (preparing meals, doing housework) had increased since 1984 impacting more health motivated migrants. Comfort and economic security motivated migrants had less disability increase than nonmigrants. Comfort migration was higher in metropolitan areas boosted by higher education, lower home ownership, and shorter stay in the community. Economic security motivated migrants had a shorter stay in the community whose children lived less than an hour away. Health motivated migrants were the oldest females with lower family income and likely to live alone. A smaller group of family crisis motivated migrants tended to be white with higher education, and likely to live with a spouse. Motives for migration included above average education, not owning a home, and short time in the community. Economic security, housing, community, and comfort were the major motivators of intercounty moves.

[Conditions and socioeconomic aspects of the Puerto Rican home]

The socioeconomic makeup of 44,000 or 5% of all Puerto Rican households based on 1980 census data was analyzed. 75% of heads of households lived in their own apartments, 25% lived in others' apartment, and 6% did not pay rent. In the metropolitan area of San Juan (MASJ) 30% of the people lived in rental units compared with 225 in the rest of the island. In the MASJ only 56% of female heads of households had their own homes vs. 82% single male heads on the island. Home owner increased in direct ratio to increasing age and income. Per capita family income was $1000-3000 for 65.5% outside the MASJ and 83.6% within the MASJ, while it was over $3000 for 79.9% outside and 92.8% inside the MASJ. 71% of household heads resided in apartments with concrete construction, 10% in housing made of wood, and 19% of houses built of concrete and wood combined. 84% of wood construction was outside the MASJ, and 80% of housing of mixed construction was located outside the MASJ. 85% of buildings in the MASJ were made of concrete. Only 55% of single female heads, especially outside the MASJ, lived in houses with concrete construction. 12% of heads lived in a home with only 1 room, 59% of apartments had an additional room, and 24% had 2 more rooms. 77% of apartments had at least 1 additional room/person, and 22% of them accommodated 2 persons/room. 60% of Puerto Rican apartments disposed of their waste through a public sewage system (83% in the MASJ). Septic tanks were more common in the rest of the island. In 1980 only 26% of households had telephone service (only 22% outside the MASJ). Telephone service was more prevalent among those with the highest education and income in the MASJ. 48% of heads had a car and 17% had more than 2, and males had most. Income was almost double in the MASJ, the age group 35-64 and university educated heads earned the most: it was much lower in female headed households. Only 19% of homes met the criteria of comfortable living.

A recipe for success: ingredients for a successful family planning program.

The basic elements of a successful family planning (FP) program are variable between countries. Providing better access to modern contraceptives, access to general and reproductive health care, and increasing economic and educational opportunities contribute to reducing fertility rates. Effective distribution is constrained by rural, isolated populations and cultural attitudes. Indonesia has used floating clinics located on boats to reach inaccessible areas; Norplant and hormonal injection availability also contribute to the 53% contraceptive prevalence rate. The Japanese Organization for International Cooperation in Family Planning has shipped bicycles to developing countries. The result has been improved status among peers and greater program success. Contraceptive social marketing programs (CSM) have been successful in some countries to distribute contraceptives through local channels such as shops and stalls; people seem willing to pay also. CSM has been successful in Egypt in increasing condom sales. IUD use increased from 11% to 42% between 1975-88 with CSM. Multimedia promotion that is carefully researched and targeted is another way to increase contraceptive prevalence (CP) rates. A Brazilian multimedia vasectomy campaign led to an 80% monthly increase in Pro-Pater male health clinics. 240,000 women in Turkey were encouraged through multimedia efforts to switch to modern methods. In Zimbabwe, men have been the target of efforts to educate them about the advantages of small families. Women are recruited to implement FP services in INdia and in poor neighborhoods; an increase from 12% to 61% was achieved. Highly motivated workers with a respect for the community's values is essential to any successful FP program as is government support. China's policy has drawn criticism; China has welcomed a UN program which provides financial motivation. Thailand has been successful due to the commitment between public and private sectors; in 17 years CP rose from 10% to 68%. Family life education is prevalent; female literacy is high at 96%.

Menstrual function after tubal sterilization.

Over 100 Million women worldwide have undergone tubal sterilization. The Collaborative Review of Sterilization (CREST) study at 12 medical centers in the US between 1978-83 examined 5070 women at 4 periodic intervals up to 5 years after the procedure. The purpose was to ascertain whether there were any changes in 6 menstrual cycle characteristics. Several different sterilization methods were examined: unipolar coagulation, bipolar coagulation, silastic band application, spring clips application, partial salpingectomy, and thermocoagulation. Other baseline characteristics which might affect changes in menstrual function over time were examined, i.e., race, body mass index, education, age, gravidity, history of pelvic pathology and pelvic surgery, method contraception immediately preceding sterilization, and incidental pelvic pathology during the sterilization. The presurgery interview included information on baseline menstrual function. The findings from multivariate analysis with unadjusted data showed changes at 5 years but not 2, including increases in menstrual pain, amount of bleeding, and intermenstrual spotting in an amount 1.3-1.8 times greater than those reporting in year 2. There were significant decreases in days/cycle and days of bleeding/cycle for the most women reporting changes. Sterilization method analysis revealed differences between methods for days/cycle, amount of bleeding, menstrual pain, irregularity, and spotting. 33% of women with the spring clip procedure reported increases in menstrual pain. The adjusted model, showed statistically significant differences in cycle length in the 5th year vs. the 1st year, as well as increases in menstrual pain, amount of bleeding, and spotting. Women with the longest cycle lengths in the adjusted analysis used the unipolar coagulation method, and the shortest cycle lengths, the spring clip. Those with the spring clip were also more likely to have menstrual pain and greater bleeding. Black women reported less irregularity and spotting and fewer days of bleeding. Older age at sterilization was related to less pain and greater regularity. The changes in bleeding pattern and menstrual pain are of greatest concern and the most frequently reported in other studies of effects of sterilization. Tissue destruction was found not to be related. Caution is urged in the interpretation of findings. Future research should focus on follow up after >5 years and comparisons with nonsterilized women.

Women's health as empowerment: towards a holistic experience.

The Women's Health Programme of the nongovernmental organization Social Action for Rural and Tribal Inhabitants of India (SARTHI) serves women living in the Santrampur taluka of Panchmahals district in Gujarat State, India. The program, which has been operating since July 1988, addresses gynecological and psychological health and issues of violence and exploitation. It incorporates traditional health practices and modern allopathic health practices. SARTHI provides gynecologic services via illiterate women health workers (barefoot gynecologists). They also counsel the rural and tribal women and mobilize them for collective action. The 1st phase of the program was training local women in maternal and child health care which included nutrition education and aseptic deliveries. It moved into its 2nd phase due to the realization that it was imposing an external health system on the local women. So the program undertook a research project to verify locally used traditional medicines. Training of the barefoot gynecologists marked the beginning of the 3rd phase. These women health workers soon realized that their main objective was empowerment of the local women. The program provides women with information to empower them to deal with their problems. Training is the key to the program's success. it designed training in phases to build upon knowledge. It begins with an 8-day training program followed by 3-day modules each month. Training includes technical health information and empowerment and leadership building. Content depends on the current situation of the women. Methodologies include role playing, songs, question-answer sessions, and reviews.

Effect of the Gulf war on infant and child mortality in Iraq.

Increased malnutrition and morbidity among Iraqi children after the onset of the Persian Gulf War have been reported by several fact-finding missions. The magnitude of the effect of the war and the economic embargo on child mortality remains nevertheless uncertain. The authors conducted a survey of 271 clusters of 25-30 households each, chosen as a representative sample of the Iraqi population. The households were selected and the interviews conducted by an international team of public health professionals independent of Iraqi authorities. In each household, all women ages 15-49 years of age were interviewed, and the dates of birth and death of all children born on or after January 1, 1985, were recorded. The study population included 16,076 children, 768 of whom died during the period surveyed (January 1, 1985-August 31, 1991). The age-adjusted relative mortality for the period following the start of the war, as compared with the period prior to the war, was 3.2 (95% confidence interval, 2.8-3.7). No material change in the relative risk was observed after adjustment for region of residence, maternal education, and maternal age. The increase in mortality after the onset of the war was higher among children 1 to less than 12 months old (relative risk, 4.1; 95% confidence interval, 3.3-5.2) and among those 12 to less than 60 months old (relative risk, 3.8; 95% confidence interval, 2.6-5.4) than among those less than 1 month old (relative risk, 1.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.4-2.4). The association between the war and mortality was stronger in northern Iraq (relative risk 5.3) and southern Iraq (relative risk 3.4) than in the central areas (relative risk 1.9) or in Baghdad (relative risk 1.7). These results demonstrate strong evidence that the Gulf war and trade sanctions caused a 3-fold increase in mortality among Iraqi children under age 5. The authors estimate that an excess of more than 46,900 children died between January-August 1991. (author's)

The risk approach to intervention in severe malnutrition in rural Bangladesh.

To determine whether clinical marasmus occurs in small groups of children from easily recognizable high-risk households, the authors conducted a case-control study to identify those risk indicators that could be used in targeted interventions. Cases were children whose midupper arm circumference measured less than 110 mm, and controls were children matched for age and sex with arm circumference greater than 120 mm. Between June 1988-June 1989, 164 such pairs of children ages 1-4 were studied in Matlab, Bangladesh. Conditional logistic regression analysis showed an increased risk of marasmus among children from families with other children under age 5 (odds ration=2.80, 95% confidence interval 1.56=5.02) and children who consumed formula foods (odds ratio-18.81, 95% confidence interval 4.15-15.85). Higher maternal education was associated with reduced risk of marasmus. Further examination of these risk indicators suggests that the resources saved through targeting fewer household will be negated by missing many children with marasmus. The authors conclude that the application of targeted interventions against marasmus, using the risk approach, is unlikely to be efficient. (author's)

Health education for the non literate: the daunting challenge]

Bangladesh has a population of 108 million, of which 25% are literate. 1/2 of those considered literate are only able to read and write their names. In this large, predominantly illiterate population, mortality and morbidity are high from both communicable and noncommunicable diseases. Broad-based health education to all segments of the population is therefore greatly needed. This paper reviews the methods of communication and successes achieved in the Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) as a model for disseminating and promoting health education. Differing from many other countries, a thriving folk culture remains in Bangladesh. Village carnivals, traditional drama and festivals, exhibits, open air film, cartoons, and messages on the backs of rickshaws are but some examples of locales and methods used in the national EPI program. More contemporary approaches employing video, TV, radio, posters, and booklets also enjoy success. These latter forms may, however, remain in the experimental stages in some areas of the country. Many forms of communication are being used to reach throughout Bangladesh, but are nonetheless inadequate in scope for such a large population. While such approaches have proved successful in both disseminating family planning messages and helping to eradicate smallpox, methods must now be expanded and adapted to further health education in the country.

Discrete time models of entry into marriage based on retrospective marital histories of young adults in the United States and the Federal Republic of Germany.

This paper identifies and quantifies social processes in the relationship between chronological age and entry into marriage. Specifically, it reviews and draws from Gudmund Hernes' article on the entry process into 1st marriage, and attempts to apply his theoretical approach empirically. Marriage entry patterns are dissected according to sex, year of birth, and level of schooling to estimate yearly fluctuations in the available pool of marriage partners. Age-related entry variations are then considered given changes in the marriage pool and labor force integration. To provide an alternative empirical operationalization of Hernes' argument, 1984 data are employed from the US Census Bureau's Survey of Income and Program Participation and the German Socioeconomic Panel. Observable age, period, and cohort effects, and employment and enrollment status had similar effects in both countries on marriage entry rates for both men and women. Individual work experience or school enrollment within the previous 2 years helps to predict marriage entry rates for German men and women. Only current educational and enrollment status are, however, associated with marriage entry for Americans. Gender-specific differences include an increased probability for men to marry once employed, regardless of school enrollment status. Women do not, however, demonstrate any higher probability to marry once employed after finishing their schooling. Earnings and entry into marriage are inversely related for women in both countries.

Janat Bibi v. Sikandar Ali [31 March 1990].

The Pakistan court reversed a lower court decision holding that the appellant, who was illiterate, had executed a deed selling her house and received valuable consideration for the sale. In reaching its decision, the court held that the burden of proof involving the sale of property by an illiterate woman was on the person claiming that a sale had occurred. It then reviewed the evidence, concluding that the appellant had affixed her thumb print to the deed in the belief that she was signing a power of attorney and that she had not been paid anything in consideration for her property. It rejected the argument that the appellant should have known what she was signing because she had a husband and adult son to counsel her. It pointed out that, at the time that the deed was signed, the appellant was living apart from her husband because of personal differences.

Jordan population and Family Health Survey 1990.

The results and discussion of the Population and Family Health Survey, 1990, for Jordan are reported for household and individual characteristics, fertility, family planning (FP), nuptiality and exposure to the risk of pregnancy, fertility preferences, infant and child mortality, maternal and child health, and infant feeding and childhood nutrition. Appendices provide a description of the sample design, estimates of sampling errors, data quality tables, and questionnaires. Statistical tables are provided on household population by age, residence, and sex; household composition; education level; school enrollment; housing characteristics; household durable goods; background characteristics of respondents; level of education; access to mass media; current fertility; fertility by background characteristics; age-specific fertility rates; fertility by marital duration; children ever born; birth intervals; age at 1st birth; teenage fertility; knowledge of contraceptive methods and sources; ever and current use of contraception; current use by background characteristics; number of children at 1st use of contraception; problems with current methods; knowledge of fertile period; timing of sterilization; sources and time to source of contraceptives; discontinuation of contraception and reasons; preferred method; acceptability of mass media for FP messages; ever-married women; marital status; marital exposure; age at 1st marriage; postpartum amenorrhea and insusceptibility; termination of exposure of risk to pregnancy; fertility preferences by age, and by number of living children; desire to stop having children; need for FP services; ideal number of children; planning status of births; wanted fertility rates; infant and child mortality by background and demographic characteristics; high risk fertility; antenatal care; tetanus toxoid vaccination; place and assistance in delivery; vaccinations by source of information and by background characteristic and in 1st year of life; prevalence and treatment of diarrhea; knowledge and use of oral rehydration packets; breast-feeding practices during diarrhea; breast-feeding status, supplementation, frequency, and duration; nutritional status by demographic and background characteristics and methodological tables.

[Microcensus annual results, 1991]

Results of the 1991 microcensus of Austria are presented, along with some comparative statistics for 1988-1990. Data are included on population by age, sex, marital status, nationality, labor force participation, occupational status, educational level, type of community, and state; female population aged 15 and over by age, social status, and presence of children; employment characteristics; private households; families; and housing. (ANNOTATION)

[Aspects of urban traditions and contemporary migration in tropical Africa (the case of the countries of the Gulf of Guinea)]

The author examines the increasing primacy associated with migration to the largest cities in precolonial west Africa. She finds that this trend has intensified since independence. The effect of education on migration from poor rural areas is pointed out, and the ability of residents in traditional cities to preserve contacts with their regions of origin is assessed. (ANNOTATION)

Polish education in the crisis decade--the testimony of population census.

"The purpose of this essay is to offer information on the links that exist between...demographic growth, education and the [labor force] in Poland, as revealed in past population censuses...taken in 1978 and 1988...." The effect of education on occupational status is discussed, and some projections for Poland's educational and employment sectors are made. (EXCERPT)

Characteristics and economic implications of migration.

Factors affecting rural-urban migration in India are explored. "The study, based on the sample of 205 migrant households, conducted in the hill region of Uttar Pradesh, attempts to highlight the characteristics of migration and its effects on the pattern of income distribution among the households....[It is found that] migration...is primarily motivated by...socioeconomic condition of households, development of road transport and communication sources, level of education...and various geographical and physical conditions." (EXCERPT)

Migration of highly educated Asians and global dynamics.

The migration of highly educated Asians to developed countries and the implications of those movements are examined. "The far-reaching effects of the movement of Asian high level manpower (HLM) are discussed in light of: 1) the global articulation of higher education; 2) the link to unequal development on a global scale; and 3) the contribution to economic development of the reverse flow of HLM to less developed countries." The focus is on migration to Australia, Canada, and the United States from the 1960s to the present. (EXCERPT)

The effect of schooling on income in Japan.

"This paper uses cross-sectional data from the 1955, 1965, and 1975 Social Stratification and Mobility Surveys to investigate the effect of schooling on personal income in the Japanese male labor force. For each survey, log-income regressions are estimated which include (in addition to controls for years of work experience) two variables to indicate educational attainment: (1) years of schooling completed, and (2) percentile ranking in the distribution of years of schooling for one's age-cohort....The results indicate that controlling for the credentialing effect of schooling significantly reduces the net effect of schooling as human capital. Regression decomposition is then used to ascertain the components of the growth in mean log-income between 1955 and 1975. The contribution of years of schooling to the increase in mean log-income across these decades is significantly reduced after controlling for the credentialing effect." (EXCERPT)

Problems in the measurement and international comparisons of socio-economic differences in mortality.

"The opportunities for research of socio-economic differences in mortality are best in countries where a system of personal identification numbers makes the computerised linkage of census and death records possible. The first part of this study is an example of the use of such linked records. It presents results on the development of mortality differences by level of education and occupational class in Finland in the period 1971-1985....The second part of the article discusses the problems in international comparisons of socio-economic mortality differences and summarises results from two comparative studies. The results are inconsistent: differences by level of education among men were found to be similar in six countries included in the comparison, whereas marked variation was found in the ratios of the mortality of manual workers to the mortality of non-manual workers." (EXCERPT)

Gender implications for survival in South Asia.

Health status and life expectancy have improved and increased, respectively, in India. Males have, however, made the greatest strides forward, with the position of women deteriorating relative to men over the period 1900-1970. For the age group under-1 year to late 30s, females face higher mortality than males. Following this period, steeply rising male mortality minimized the disparity. In the early years through age 10, sex and age segregation within the traditional peasant family leads to health treatment differentials between boys and girls. Greater resources are invested in caring for male offspring. Later, over ages 20-30 years, women suffer comparatively inadequate nutritional input in face of the extra strains of pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, and menstruation. Factors supporting this differential treatment, nutrition, and subsequent mortality are, however, being eroded by education, waning subsistence production, and developing female autonomy. Note is made that this latter factor has thus far done more to reduce overall child mortality than to reduce differential mortality according to gender. It may also be noted that a female's chances of survival depend more upon the general mortality level in her place of residence than her gender.

Africa's new kind of fertility transition.

Demographic and health surveys suggest that by 1990, fertility had declined by 15-25% in Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Kenya, far beyond the 10% decline generally accepted to indicate the beginning of irreversible fertility transition. Unique to these 3 countries are infant mortality rates under 70/1000 live births, and 18-32% of married women using modern methods of contraception. Populations in these countries also enjoy unusually high levels of education. Competing against fertility decline are, however, African society, religion, polygyny, the belief of strength and safety in numbers, and weak or nonexistent family planning programs. These negative forces are either eroding or otherwise slowly changing for the better as rural systems collapse. While studies support the beginning of fertility decline in Africa, the paper notes how African fertility transition differs from that realized in Europe and Asia. African fertility decline, and increased contraceptive usage, are observed among married and unmarried women of all ages. This trend is dissimilar from Asian and European transitions in which little fertility change occurred among those under age 25. Evidence from the 1990 Ado-Ekiti fertility study confirms that sustained fertility decline has probably commenced in Nigeria, and results largely from the rapidly increasing use of contraception. This greater use is fueled by government policy legitimizing contraception, and an accompanying greater supply of methods. As women increasingly look to delay pregnancy and 1st marriage, regional family planning programs would do well to provide condoms, especially to teenagers, and recognize women's increasing role in urging the use of contraception.

[Modifications of costs and benefits of children supported by parents: socio-economic differentiation and its impact on fertility. Evolution of fertility and the role of children in rural West Africa]

The displacement of control over reproduction from the lineage to the family, the spread of school attendance, and other socioeconomic changes among rural populations in West Africa appear to have had little effect thus far on aggregate fertility rates. This work examines the interrelations between fertility and social and economic changes in rural African groups involved in agricultural production for the market. The work 1st assesses the socioeconomic context of fertility in plantation economies of sub-Saharan Africa, discussing the traditional economic role of children in agricultural production and old age security and clan and lineage control over the family as well as the profound changes introduced by the increasing autonomy of the domestic group in production and reproduction and the increase in school attendance. Separate discussions of each group explore fertility trends and the attitudes and motivations related to them and assess the emergence of new constraints and new demographic ideas resulting from development of new strategies of reproduction. Special consideration is given to the role of school attendance, which has altered the place of children in society and the costs and benefits associated with them. School attendance initially may be favorable to large family sizes as it allows educated children to migrate to the city and establish the family in the modern sphere, but as employment becomes scarce and the labor market saturated, the high costs of maintaining and educating children may begin to encourage fertility limitation. Finally, the effects of economic crises in plantation systems and of structural adjustment programs on rural families are evaluated. The cases of the Ewe and Kabye of the Dayes Plateau in southwest Togo, the Akye of the southeast Ivory Coast, and the inhabitants of the Sassandra region of western Ivory Coast demonstrates the diversity of fertility trends in relation to the costs of children and the immediate and longterm benefits expected from them. The relationship is not uniform, because strong natalist attitudes can correspond either to strategies directed toward simple reproduction of the agrarian society as in the case of the Kabye and the populations of the Sassandra, or to expansion into the urban and national spheres as in the case of Ewe and Akye during their period of economic growth. But recently the economic crisis, which has tended to increase the relative costs of children, has created pressure to lower fertility as can be seen among the Ewe and more recently the Akye.

Female education, age, parity, and reproduction cessation in Ghana.

The Ghana Demographic and Health Survey, 1988, was used to examine responses from 2490 fecund women aged 20-49 with no education, some primary education (7.7 years), and some secondary education (11.8 years). The objective was to examine the relationship between female education and intentions not to bear another child. The hypothesis was that educated females have more interest in ceasing reproduction than the less educated or uneducated. Ghana has experienced increases in female education to 62% in 1984, and relatively stable fertility of 6.11 in 1985-88. There is evidence from other high fertility countries that increases in female education can account for as much as a 25% drop in fertility. A profile of the sample population in provided, i.e., the mean of the uneducated was 32.8 years, some primary education was 29.8 years, and some secondary education was 29.6 years. Fertility was 4.7 births and 3.8 living children for those uneducated, 3.7 births and 3.2 alive for primary educated, and 2.3 births and 2.0 alive for the secondary educated. 23% of either those uneducated or secondary educated intended not to have another child, and 25% of primary educated did not want another child. When age and parity of living children are taken into consideration, it is apparent that after 3 births women desire to terminate reproduction, and there is an inverse relationship between education and intentions after controlling for parity. There is a higher level of desired stops of childbearing at all parities >1 and levels of education. Among the uneducated, at all parities of <6 children, <50% desire no more children. Among primary educated, <50% desire no more children at parity 5, and among secondary educated, parity 4. The results of the logistic regression without controlling for parity show that level of schooling does not significantly alter the odds of stoppage of childbearing. When controlling for parity, the log odds of the intention to cease childbearing increased with rising levels of education. Primary school increases the log odds by .74 compared with uneducated women, and secondary educated 1.49 compared with the uneducated. Sub-Saharan African women are interested in fertility limitation, contrary to popular claims. More research into the relationship between intentions and behavior change is needed.

[National Contraception Survey, 1990. Preliminary report]

The 1989 Haitian National Survey on Contraception was carried out by the Haitian Institute of Children under technical assistance from the Centers from Disease Control and funded by USAID. 2200 women aged 15-44 and 1200 men aged 15-59 were interviewed in 4650 households. 33% of the interviewed population had not attended school. 1 out of 8 women under 20 were in consensual union, the proportion of women with 7 or more children was 5 times higher in rural areas than in Port-au-Prince, and the average number of live births was twice as high. Women's knowledge of contraceptives included the pill (73.1%), the condom (72.9%), the injectables (52.9%), and female sterilization (37%). Among men the best known were the condom (79%) and the pill (54.5%). Actual contraceptive use was 6.5% for women aged 15-44 and 8.5% for men aged 15-59. 10.2% of women and 11.3% of men in union used contraception. Causes of nonuse included breast feeding (24.5%), pregnancy at the time (12%), the desire to have a child (69.7%), no sexual activity (9.1%), menopause (8.9%), inability to get pregnant (3.9%), and noncontraceptive surgery (1.1%). 62% of men in consensual union used the condom to avoid pregnancy, 13% used it against AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and 20% for both (35% of single men used it for both AIDs and STDs). Close to 3/4 of married men used the condom in all sex acts. 1/2 of women who had given birth in the previous 5 years in Port-au-Prince had at least 6 prenatal visits, and 3/4 had 3 visits or more. In other urban areas 70% had at least 3 visits s. 43% in rural areas (39% did not have a single visit). 56% of live births were planned and 32% were not, and 10% said it was God's will (70% of births were not planned in Jamaica, while 80% were planned in Salvador). Only 40% of births were planned among those with more than 6 live births. 70% of more educated women and 50% of less educated mothers had planned births.

Hezhen nationality -- China's smallest ethnic group.

The smallest of China's 55 ethnic groups is the Hezhen nationality who once lived at the confluence of the Heilongjiang, Songhua, and Usuli rivers in Heilongjiang Province in northeast China. Their illiteracy rate is the 4th lowest following the Chinese Tartars, the Chinese Koreans, and the Xibos, and even lower than that of the Han nationality. There were about 12,000 Hezhen citizens in the early 18th century. Their number dropped to 5010 during 1850-57, a reduction of 58% within 1 1/2 centuries. It declined further to 1600 i 1911 and to 1200 in 1930. The infant survival rate of the Hezhens was as low as 25%. There was a population of only 300 in 1945, the year when the Japanese invaders surrendered. The population has grown more than 10-fold since then. It rose from 300 in 1945 to 449 in 1953, to 781 in 1963, to 1476 in 1982, and to 4245 in 1990. 39% of the Hezhen population are children under 14 years of age. According to the 1982 census there were 38 Hezhens with university or college education, or 2.55% of the population. There were only 199 illiterates, 15% of the total Hezhen population aged 12 and over, lower than the national average. A pronatalist policy in place since 1984 allows each Hezhen couple of reproductive age to have 3 children. The improvement of medical and health care has been a priority. The enrollment rate of the school-age children was 100% in 1990. Illiteracy among the Hezhen teenagers and adults has been eradicated. In contrast, prior to 1945 there were only 2 Hezhens with even elementary education.

A comparison of the effects of socioeconomic heterogamy and changes on marital dissolution for first marriages and remarriages.

This paper used National Longitudinal Surveys and multivariate analyses to explore the relationship between marital stability and age at marriage, education, and employment status in 1st marriages and remarriage. Of particular interest are the dynamics of individual characteristic change within marriage, and how such change may effect marriage stability over time. Better understanding of these dynamics and their effects may help to yield insight into the causes of divorce. While 2 people entering marriage may complement each other, differences may exist between their attained levels of education and/or their participation in the formal labor market. Initial heterogamy and postmarital changes in these variables affect the potential for divorce in both types of marriages. The highest risk of marital instability exists among couples who have heterogamous educational levels, and where the husband is not the only spouse employed full-time in the formal labor market. Marital stability is higher for couples who achieve greater educational status equality, and where the male increasingly becomes the sole wage-earner over the course of the marriage. Less likely to survive are those marriages in which educational heterogamy grows, and both spouses become engaged in the full-time, formal labor force. Neither educational not employment changes are found to be more rapid within remarriages than in 1st marriages.

Mixed results mark Asian family planning. China and India must increase the reach of their family-planning programs, reports say.

Western nations view China as a nation that coerces couples to have only 1 child. Yet the average rural family still has almost 3 children. In India, rapid population growth motivated the government to develop a model plan to limit very high fertility, but it has not yet executed the plan. Under present conditions, the population growth in India will be greater than that of China. Nevertheless if China and India do not make considerable strides to improve their family planning (FP) programs soon, the likelihood of stabilizing the world population at a tolerable level is grim. In fact, today's population size of 5 billion people could grow 4 times by 2099. In 1971, China began its FP program which promoted delayed marriage, smaller families, and more contraceptive use, and mean family size fell by >50%. Despite this success and the 1-child policy, FP services are not accessible to 10s of millions of rural Chinese couples. Those services that do exist have undertrained workers. The demands created by the highly ambitious goals of the 1-child policy hamper their efforts. The situation is more grave in India where the government has only recently admitted its problem with population growth. It promotes an FP method preferred by women who already have many children--female sterilization. The years of government inaction have caused sizeable malnutrition. 2 Indian states have been able to achieve low fertility, however, by improving access to education for females and elevating women's status. The US and other nations should offer more aid to India and China to improve their FP services. Even though both countries do have comprehensive FP networks, poorly trained staff, limited contraceptive choice, and insufficient counseling keep the infrastructure from being effective. Population specialists advise India to pattern the strong support the Chinese government has give to FP.

Family-building patterns of professional women: a comparison of lawyers, physicians, and postsecondary teachers.

Researchers analyzed 1980 data on 1120 postsecondary teachers, 839 lawyers, and 486 physicians to compare family building events of these 3 groups of 30-39 year old white, professional women living in the US. 35-39 year old women were less likely to be currently married and were more likely to have no children than women in the general population (<66% vs. >75% and 20-30% vs. 9%). More 35-39 year old physicians were currently married than lawyers (68.7% vs. 59.3%; p<.05). They also were less likely to be divorced than both lawyers and teachers (10.1% vs. 20.6% and 16.1%, respectively; p<.05). Lawyers had the highest divorce and the lowest marriage rates. A higher percentage of physicians remarried than the other 2 groups (30-34 year olds=49.1% vs. 35.4% for lawyers and 44.6% for teachers; p<.05 for lawyers only; 34-39 year olds=51.4% vs. 46.5% and 49.7%, respectively). 35-39 year old physicians were less likely to be childless (21.1% vs. 28.4% for lawyers and 31.4% for teachers; p<.05 for teachers only). They also had more children than the other professional groups (2.18 vs. 1.93 and 1.8, respectively; p<.05). Even though 35-39 year old physicians exhibited greater involvement in family life than the other 2 groups, they worked considerably more hours/week than the other 2 groups (43.5 vs. 38.3 and 35.2, respectively; p<.05). Their husbands worked even more hours but the difference was not significant (47.9 vs. 46.3 and 45.2, respectively). A possible explanation for the differences may be wage differences. Women physicians made more money than the other groups. Lawyers and teachers were at greater risk of income loss following marriage and childbearing than physicians. Thus they were more likely to not marry, remarry, and have children. Other possible reasons which the researchers could not test were personality differences and structure of career paths. Further research is needed to explore these possibilities for the differences among the 3 professional groups of women.

Women and sustainable development.

Gender issues in sustainable development focuses on constraints, the policy environment, land rights, the division of labor, reproductive rights, human resource development, productive energy, care of children, education, politics, security, social norms, and women's initiatives. African women's participation in the development process has been limited by the policy environment, sociocultural setting, and women's initiatives. African policy has not recognized the different roles that men and women play. There is unequal division of labor, legal discrimination against women, and abuse of women's basic human rights. Women's subordinate position in society and their concrete needs are ignored. Land tenure and credit systems are based on discriminatory policies. Women share a major portion and in some cases all of the agricultural labor with few tools or equipment. The operating assumption is that women's labor supply is inelastic. In order to fully participate in the development process, women need to be able to determine the number of children needed, the spacing between children, and the timing and the method of contraception. Human resource development in Africa has focused on training men. Women must contribute a major portion of time and labor to processing and cooking food in addition to caring for children. Access to higher education is limited. Political accords have been reached without women when women have contributed significantly to political struggles. Social security is compromised during violence and civil strife. There is sexual harassment in the work place. Culture can subordinate women. Women have been unable to change policy making, planning, and patriarchal ideology. Women are marginal contributors to the labor force. Income-generating projects are primarily confined to the informal sector. The governments impose the women's programs. Political influence is highly desired if change in women's stature is to be accomplished.

Trends in gender, family background, and regional effects on the access to higher education, 1967-1984: a case study of Korea.

The system of higher education in Korea has expanded to accommodate a 10-fold increase in enrollment over the past 3 decades. Successively, the Korean government refrained from influencing the system, repressed the college enrollment quote (CEQ), partially expended the CEQ, radically expanded the CEQ, and ultimately repressed it after 1985. These varying approaches represented government attempts to adapt higher education to meet industrial and labor market demands. 1970, 1975, 1980, and 1985 census data are used to examine trends in the effects of social class origin, father's education, place of residence, and gender on transitions to college education. Analysis identified no consistent trend in the effects of father's education and social class origin. Broadly, all benefit as educational opportunities expand. College education is, however, expensive, and funded largely by parents. The relatively affluent are therefore in an advantageous position over less wealthy families. The relative advantages of the upper middle class for female high school graduates diminished in the recent 3 birth cohorts. Additionally, regional inequities in access to higher education decreased over time. Controlling for other factors, women were more likely to go to college, but family resource constraints may dictate that male youths are given priority over females to matriculate.

Demographic transition in Korea.

Korea's demographic transition is presented as following 3 stages: a transitional phase of constant high fertility and continuously decreasing mortality (1920s-60s), a modernization phase with rapidly decreasing fertility and gradually improved mortality (1960s-84), and a phase with stable fertility below the replacement level (1980s-present). The total fertility rate (TFR) is 1.7 and large families are unlikely in the future. Socioeconomic differentials still affect fertility. Family size intentions can still be affected by government policy and economic conditions. The rate of growth was 3% in 1960, which declined to 1% in 1986 and is expected to continue at that level for some time. Zero population growth will be reached in 2020 at 50,193,000 population based on the following assumptions: 1) a stable TFR of 1.7, 2) life expectancy increasing by .5 years/year until 70 years and .25 years/year thereafter, and 3) emigration of 38,800/year. The age structure of the population will show a rapid increase in the population >65 years, an increasing population 15-64 years, and a declining population <15 years. Over the next 30 years, manpower needs will be sufficient. Population policy will be directed to quality of life issues and the relationship between population and development. Questions were directed after the presentation to the speaker on the implications of having a declining <15 years population, on whether Korea is planning to encourage larger families, on the nature of abortion laws, on the need for more specific information on cultural factors which contribute to fertility decline, and on whether family planning was used during the World War II years. The response was that life cycle studies are complicated, and family planning policy is a political issue. The concern in Korea's industrialization is for a high quality population. Another Korean response was that educating women was an important cultural determinant in the fertility decline as well as rapid industrialization. There is a problem of a declining dependency ratio, which should be further researched.

Demographic situation of Sri Lanka.

The demographic changes in population size and growth, mortality, mortality among subgroups, and fertility trends are described and expected population growth and changes in the age structure are presented for Sri Lanka. Improvement has been made in reducing the growth rate from 1.8 to 1.4%, the birth rate from 28.4 to 21.3 births/1000, the fertility rate from 3.4 to 2.5 children/women, the infant mortality rate from 34.4 to 19.4 deaths/1000 births, and the neonatal mortality rate from 22.7 to 16 deaths/1000 births; maternal mortality has remained low at .6/1000 births. Total population is expected to be 17.1 million in mid-1990, which is an increase of 2 million over 10 years. Emigration has affected this growth. The current situation is reflective of natural increase. The declining rate of natural increase to 1.5% is due to a decline in the birth rate, a stable death rate, and emigration. The target is a 1% rate of growth. Data were obtained from the vital registration system which reports at the national and district levels; unfortunately, socioeconomic differentials in mortality are not available from the registration system, but from the Demographic and Health Survey in 1987. The crude death rate has remained almost constant at 6.2/1000 population. Life expectancy in 1981 was 67.6 years for males and 72.1 for females. Infant mortality was reduced by 33% over the decade and child mortality, which was already at low levels, was reduced by 10%. Children are more vulnerable when mothers have low levels of education. Type of place of residence also affects infant and child mortality levels, i.e., infant mortality is higher is urban areas, and child mortality is higher in rural areas. Both infant and child mortality are high on estates. Fertility decline is attributed to declines at older ages (>30 years) for fertility in the 1970s-80s, while in the recent past, the decline is related to declines at younger ages. Colombo city and urban areas has the lowest fertility rate of 2.1/women. Estates have the highest rates at 3.3 followed by rain-fed and irrigated dry areas. Age at 1st marriage has increased to 25 years and contributed 27.6% to the decline in fertility between 1971-81. 54% of the decline in the 1980s is related to marital fertility declines due to contraceptive use. The population is expected to increase to 20 million by 2001.

Vietnam: population dynamics and prospects.

The demography of Vietnam is population growth, age-sex distributions, mortality, marriage, family planning (FP), fertility, international migration, urbanization and internal migration, education and literacy, labor force and occupation, and future population trends. Background information is given for the political situation and economy since 1975 and the 1992 population count. Appendices include an evaluation of census coverage, 1989 census special enumeration groups, the council of ministries decision no. 162 on population and FP policy, and supplementary tables. The conclusion is that Vietnam's data have improved along with the government's and the international community responsiveness. Estimated population for 1992 is 70 million of whom 49% are male and 51% female; the sex ratio is gradually improving. 50% are <21 years old. Mortality is low but trends cannot be ascertained. Infant mortality is 50 deaths/1000 live births. Fertility growth is about 1.9%/year. The labor force population will increase greatly before leveling off. Primary levels of education are prevalent. The population is employed primarily in agriculture. There is some unemployment in urban areas (13%); rural unemployment is 4%. Urbanization has occurred primarily since 1982 in small towns of 2,000-20,000 population. 80% reside in rural areas. The demographic transition is more advanced than the economic transition. Political orthodoxy and economic structure prevent rapid modernization. Family planning is poorly funded and there is unmet demand for suitable contraception. There is pressure from the government to limit childbearing. 50% use birth control (IUDs, withdrawal, and period abstinence). Desired number of children is 2.5. Life expectancy is 65 years. 13% are disabled, i.e., 1.14 million invalids are out of the labor force. As 100,000 emigrate annually and many are Hoa (Chinese). 3 million urbanites and 2 million hill dwelling minorities have been relocated to new economic zones, 13% of the population are minorities and have a higher fertility rate.

Food security, environment, and agrarian reform: failures and opportunities in Latin America.

The 10 failures affecting quality of life in Latin America are discussed: 1) communism, 2) family planning (FP), 3) agricultural extension, 4) military aid, 5) economic aid, 6) micromanagement, 7) pilot projects, 8) big government, 9) conservation, and 10) drugs. History shows that the best way of overcoming the food security and conservation/environment issues is to mobilize people in a campaign, such as are expected to attend the UN Conference on Development; 50,000 citizens are expected to participate. The symptoms of ecological disaster (Deforestation, loss of topsoil, global warming, ozone depletion) should not mask the primal causes: population growth, illiteracy, poverty, bad government, cattle overgrazing, the military, failure of agricultural extension, and failure of agrarian reform. The failure of communism brings with it an open door to new business, creativity, less government, abolition of sterile rhetoric, and faster response to problems. FP failures are epitomized in the US position at the Mexico City World Population congress in 1984, i.e., that there was no connection between population and development. National governments can run effective drug promotion campaigns, but not effective drug stop promotion; other approaches particularly at the local level must be sought. Agricultural extension failure meant a focus on medium to large farmers in the US and bureaucratized, overstaffed, rigid national structures in the Third World. Only 10% of small farmers have access to modern technology. The hope is in Mexican President de Gortari's intention to abolish the ejido system of agriculture and establish a new national agricultural extension. Military aid must be stopped and armed forces and armaments reduced. Economic aid has led the Third World into bankruptcy and has been unable to replicate successful activities. Micromanagement has involved nongovernmental organization's stranglehold on projects and insufficient extension and expansion and collaboration with other projects. Pilot projects need to be replaced with campaigns of volunteer community health workers. Big, bad government has been an obstacle to food security, growth, and conservation. Conservation is dead. Ecology is complicated.

Fertility differentials among the Ijo in southern Nigeria: does urban residence make a difference?

The Western concept of urban in the southern Nigerian context is questioned. Fertility differences among the Ijo ethnic group and migrants are examined with particular reference to the relevance of the urban environment vs. educational status. An intensive ethnographic study of families in Amakiri and Benin cities was combined with demographic and fertility surveys of all married women 18-55 years conducted in amakiri in 1981-82 and all women who were former residents (married women 18-55 years) of Amakiri in Benin, Warri, Port Harcourt, and Lagos in 1984-86. The indepth study of at least 509 women served the purpose of providing data on families functioning in urban and rural locations at the micro level. Background information on the Ijo and Nigeria is given. A review of relevant literature is also presented. Instruments included a household census form, a pregnancy history form, and Caldwell's Value of Children questionnaire on the Yoruba population. Ethnographic findings are presented separately from demographic analysis. Reproductive patterns are identified as 1) childbearing initiated at older ages, 2) at younger ages, and 3) prolonged birth intervals. Proximate determinants are not explained. The findings show that age at 1st birth showed large differences between low and highly educated groups which was greater than across urban and rural groups. Birth interval was unrelated to education level or residence. Mean number of children did not vary by residence for women <39 years. Urban women were better educated than rural women. Regression results show that the mean number of children is significantly higher among women with low education by a factor of 1.46. Place of residence does not significantly influence mean number of children when education and age (or age squared) at survey are controlled. When education and residence are regressed on children ever born, similar results are found. Migration status equations did not change the results. 36% of the variance in mean number of children is explained (Durbin-Watson = 1.76). Likelihood ration estimates were used to evaluate the influence of other socioeconomic factors; women's education was the most important covariate of mean number of children, followed by women's occupation, and husband's education. Age at initiation of childbearing is more important than birth interval in determining the mean number of children. Urban dwellers with low education follow reproductive strategies similar to rural uneducated women. Caution is urged in study and analysis of fertility determinants unless definitions are culturally appropriate.

Implementing comprehensive school health education / promotion programmes.

The implementation of comprehensive school health education (CSHE) provides an opportunity for children to acquire health knowledge, skills, and values, to develop self-reliance, and to become a healthy and productive citizen. CHSE needs to have the highest priority instead of being reduced to an add-on and given low priority. Evidence of effective school health programs will help to justify a high position on the educational agenda. WHO has been a partner in supporting member states' efforts to try innovative approaches, adapting methods to local circumstances, and examining these experiences. Approaches must take a holistic view of health and utilize the school setting, the home environment, the community, and the media in a collaborative effort. The worldwide immunization program is an example of such an effort. Intersectoral planning is another important, essential component of CSHE; the health and education sectors must be cooperative at the national level. Governments and international agencies must join hands in sharing experiences and expertise. Out of school youth must be reached as well; the Health of Youth Technical Discussions at the 1989 World Health Assembly Meetings in 1989 and the World Conference on Education for All in 1990 included this topic in their agendas. The economic benefits are important, but it should not be overlooked that the moral basis for ensuring health and education for all is at stake. The educational system must provide for the preparation of children for employment and for functioning fully in society. Guidelines for implementing comprehensive school health education have been suggested at the WHO/UNESCO/UNICEF Conference on Comprehensive School Health Education/Promotion Programs.

Nepal moves mountains with literacy.

Women's literacy in Nepal is 13% compared with 38% for men. 70% of children, primarily girls, enrolled in school drop out. Many girls are never enrolled. Nepal is a country with rapid population growth, poverty, and an eroding resource base. A description is given of the effective Chili Beti, a women's literacy program operated by the Nepalese government and UNICEF. The target is girl's not enrolled in the formal school system. Classes are conveniently arranged so as not to interfere with household life in a traditional, rural society. Classes begin in November and last for 6 months at a time of day agreeable to students and parents; this avoids a conflict with field work and household chores. The program began in 1983 in a few remote areas and has expanded to include 75 districts. 5000 girls have completed the course. Attendance rates are 86%, and 25% graduate into the primary school system. The goal is to reach 1.7 million out-of-school children by the year 2000, and to expand the program to include boys as well. Success is attributed to course material which is made relevant to girls' daily lives and builds simultaneously practical knowledge and self-confidence, i.e., building latrines or halting rat infestation. Songs and group activities (planting gardens) are used to reinforce classroom presentations. A unique feature of the program is the use of the cartoon character, Kamali, who is a young village girl engaging students while gradually acquiring skills and becoming a Chili Beti teacher herself. Kamali also mobilizes her community to fight soil erosion. After a year of lessons, a secret is revealed: that Kamali is a member of the lower caste; this instills hope that changes is possible. Teachers are also role models and are selected from the local area. There is a month long teacher training program involving recruitment of girls for the program and teaching in and out of a classroom setting. The program challenges attitudes about the appropriateness of education for girls, and has the support of national government leaders. The connection between female literacy and lower birth rates is being recognized as being a way to meet population reduction targets. Providing opportunities for work for educated girls is the next step needed.

Household demand for health care in El Salvador. Volume I: household survey: methodology and findings. Appendices.

Appendices to a household survey of demand for health care in El Salvador are presented. Included are the survey questionnaire, supplementary technical details on the probabilistic sample, and 117 tables of results. Relative standard error, the sample framework, sample selection, and estimation procedures are topics covered in the section on technical details. Tables include detailed information on population structure, literacy, educational status, occupation, household distribution, water supply, sanitation, health insurance, perceived illness, outpatient health care, reasons for not seeking health care, medical care coverage and concentration, and structure and distribution of hospitalizations.

The perils of motherhood.

The seminar on maternal morbidity and mortality in the Philippines held in 1991 is described. The objective of the meeting was to define the status of women's health in the country and to prepare for a more comprehensive and developed implementation of local reproductive health services. The seminar honored the International Day of Action for Women's Health. Maternal mortality statistics show a rate of 1.1.1000 live births since 1988 vs. 2.1/1000 live births in 1980. Maternal mortality is greater among young 1st time mothers, among those with >5 children, and among those >40 years regardless of the number of children. Obstetric deaths account for 85% of all maternal deaths. The common causes in 1985-89 were hemorrhage, infection, and hypertensive disorders. Pulmonary disease and acute hepatitis account for indirect obstetric mortality. The prior period from 1984 to 1985 in Manila showed the leading causes to be puerpural sepsis, septic induced abortion, postpartum hemorrhage, and eclampsia. In Manila 33% deliver at home. 65% of hospital emergency cases involve women without prenatal care, and 1 out of 4 are dying upon admission and 1 out of 5 die within 5-6 hours. 58% died within 2 days after admission. 80% of these deaths were preventable. Lack of health education and inadequate diet due to poverty account for a major predisposing role. Confounding factors are anemia, tuberculosis, and parasitism. Broad risk factors are the inadequacy of health services and socioeconomic conditions. Proposals to reduce maternal mortality by 50% include focusing health programs on both mother and child, improving knowledge about prenatal care, improving the quality of prenatal care, and improving the quality of family planning (FP) services. Medical institutions need to maintain adequate supplies of equipment and supplies. Statistics and research are needed. Contraception for the health of the child was proposed as the appropriate tool for acceptance of FP. Competition for funds was a problem. Problems were also identified as the power imbalance between the sexes. High risk screening was recommended at the local level by the health worker. Workshops were formed and issues were identified, recommendations made, activities described, and the government and nongovernmental responses given.

Fertility decline in Prussia 1875 to 1910: a pooled cross-section time-series analysis.

The authors examine the fertility decline in Germany using data for 407 Kreis, or small local areas, in Prussia from 1875 to 1910. Data are from the Prussian Statistical Bureau, and the analytic method involved uses a pooled cross-section time-series approach with fixed effects. "Our analysis suggests that inferences drawn from previous research have resulted in an unwarranted rejection of the importance of economic factors, and over-emphasis of cultural or traditional factors. While cultural proxies may be associated with fertility level, they contribute little to the explanation of fertility decline. Economic factors, especially the increase in females employed in non-traditional occupations, the growth of financial institutions, the development of transportation-communications infrastructure, and improvements in education, are the forces which drove fertility decline in 19th century Prussia." (EXCERPT)

Progress and stagnation: changes in fertility and women's position in an Indian village.

1975 data on 15-26 year old married women living in a village on the Krishna River in Satara District in Maharashtra in India were compared with those from 1987 to examine changes in women's status, fertility, and contraceptive use. Women's prestige increased over the 12 years, but they had less control over their affairs and those around them. More wealth, migrant labor replacing women laborers in the fields, and adoption of the ideology and customs of the upper castes (Sanskritization) all reinforced traditional women's roles. The leading contraceptive method in both years was female sterilization. In 1975, 10% of the women had undergone sterilization and 7% used other contraceptive methods, and by 1987, these figures were 16% and 4%, respectively. Fertility seemed to be decreasing as evidenced by the desired number of children (3.41-2.9) and limits to fertility in the case of no sons. In both years, travel frequency, husband-wife communication, and control over resources were positively and significantly associated with desired fertility. In 1987, women who were more apt to desire daughters were also more apt to respect their daughters' opinions regarding choosing a husband. Women who respected their daughters' choices also intended on a smaller family size even if they had no sons. In 1975 and 1987, women who were most likely to stop childbearing after desired family size was achieved even if they had no sons were educated women, women who married relatively late, and those whose hometown was near the village the lived in as unmarried women. In fact, women in 1987 were less geographically isolated from their original families than in 1975. The major impetuses for fertility decline in this village was overall community support for family planning and an active sterilization campaign. Relative affluence and Sanskritization resulted in lower women's status.

Can improvements in water supply reduce childhood diarrhoea?

In 1987, health workers followed 1096 <4-year old children from 3 villages in Kirotshe district, Northern Kivu Province, Zaire for 1 year to determine whether installation of piped water in 2 of the villages effected a reduction in the incidence of diarrhea and whether the reduction was subject to water use. The annual number of days of diarrhea/child was 20 days (based on 2-week incidence) and 19 days (based on 1-day prevalence). 57% of the children considered to be facility users based on a distance =or< 5 minutes walk lived in households who had a high water demand (=or> 501). 78% lived >5 minute walk from households with a low demand for water (<501). the median attack rate of diarrhea for children living in the control village and those living >5 minutes walk from the public standpipe was 2.2 episodes/child/year, but fell to 1 episode/child/year for children living =or< 5 minute walk from the public standpipe (p<.001). In the intervention villages, the median attack rate of diarrhea for children living in households using <501 of water daily equaled 2.4 episodes/child/year compared with 1 episode/child/year for children living in households using =or> 501 of water daily (p<.001). Diarrhea incidence was negatively associated with maternal education (p<.05), housing quality (p<.01), and household size (p<.01). On the other hand, =or> 5 minute walk to a standpipe and household water use of =or> 501/day were positively associated with these same factors (p<.01). Accessibility to public standpipes was better for the limited, well educated people living in the best quality housing who also lived along the main road where the public standpipes were. Yet they were already the least exposed group. Women and children were more likely to get water from the closest water source rather than the safest water source. Thus planners must consider water-related behavior of the target population.

Context and content: the impact of school-leaving and school-based health education on AIDS-relevant cognitions.

A study was conducted to better understand which factors influence youths' beliefs, attitudes, and intentions on AIDS/HIV-related issues. Specifically, how are they affected by enrollment in school and school-based health and sex education? A postal questionnaire was sent to 690 16-18 year olds in Dundee, Scotland, over the period 1988-90. 387 responded, of which 230 were female, and 151 male; 278 were still enrolled in school. Controlling for differences in socioeconomic status and sexual experience, remaining in the school environment was found to help sustain safer attitudes and intentions about AIDS. School-based AIDS/HIV-relevant education also had an independent positive effect upon respondents. Leaving school, however, interacted with respondent sex and the amount of relevant education received prior to departure. Males who left school early are most likely to disregard useful or important mass media information on AIDS. Leaving school also reduced the difference between male and female intentions to use condoms with new partners, reducing an otherwise greater intention on the part of females to use condoms. Those having left school and receiving less education were also significantly more pessimistic and worried about quotidian contact with HIV+ people, and their ability to control against HIV infection. Results of this study suggest the merits of providing relevant education early in the course of secondary school to best reach those students who will ultimately depart early. Additionally, it is pointed out that contextual factors may have as much impact upon the formation of beliefs, attitudes, and behavior as specific interventions.

Immunization coverage, infant morbidity and infant mortality in Freetown, Sierra Leone.

1990 household survey data on children of 1841 middle and low income women in Greater Freetown, Sierra Leone were analyzed to determine immunization coverage about 5 years after implementation of the Expanded Program on Immunization and infant morbidity and mortality. Immunization coverage for DPT, polio, measles, and BCG stood at 77.3%, 45.8%, 61.8%, and 89.4%, respectively. These figures were considerably higher than in 1975 (21.8%, 10.7%, 14.3%, and 11.9%, respectively). Even though most children received their immunizations at hospitals in 1990 (46.9%) and 1989 (52.1%), a higher percentage of children received them at public health units (18.7% vs. 11.6%) and outreach public clinics (20.7% vs. 10.3%) in 1990 than in 1989, respectively. The percentage receiving immunizations from private clinics fell (26-13.7%). The leading causes of infant morbidity included fever (14.8%), diarrhea (6.1%), measles (3.3%), skin diseases (3%), worms in feces (0.9%), and pneumonia (0.9%). In 1975, these diseases were also the major cause of infant morbidity, but so was tetanus which caused no morbidity in 1990. Infant mortality declined greatly between 1985-87 and 1988-89 (162.3-69.9). Neither socioenvironmental conditions nor nutritional status improved during this period so the decrease in mortality was most likely a result of increased immunization coverage. Between 1987-90, piped water was negatively associated with infant and child mortality (coefficient=-0.165). Mother's education had the same, but stronger, effect on infant and child mortality (coefficient=0.206). This study revealed that appropriate use of low cost medical technologies (i.e., vaccines) reduces infant and child mortality in a developing country that does not have concomitant improvement in socioeconomic development and increases in Western medicine. Other technologies Sierra Leone could implement to further reduce mortality include oral rehydration, family planning, antimalarial accessibility, promotion of breast feeding, and improved feeding practices during illness.

Attitudes about abortion of women who undergo prenatal diagnosis.

Data on 120 women who had experienced either amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling (CVS) and were attending clinics serving women in the Washington, D.C. area or in the San Diego, California area were analyzed to examine their attitudes toward abortion. In-depth, open-ended interviews were also conducted with 24 currently or recently pregnant women who had also undergone a prenatal diagnostic procedure. All the women wanted the pregnancy in question, and all were more wealthy and better educated than the average woman in the US. Yet women who underwent CVS were better educated (completed college, 89.1% vs. 57.2%) and were more affluent (mean household income, $56,000 vs. $46,000) than those who underwent amniocentesis. Women who had CVS encountered difficulties with obtaining access to CVS and, if it were not for their own initiative, they would have not been able to undergo CVS. This emphasized that, due to more economic, educational, or informational resources, they had greater access to prenatal care. It also verified earlier studies identifying a correlation between adoption of innovations and individual resources. 39.5% of CVS users had earlier elected to terminate a previous pregnancy compared with 22.4% of amniocentesis users. Most respondents supported women's freedom of choice to abort a pregnancy for reasons of endangerment to a mother's health (100% for general population, 98.1% for self), rape or incest (98.2% vs. 97.2%), fetal abnormality (99.1% vs. 100%), low income (86.7% vs. 61.2%), and desire to have no more children (81.3%-88.5% vs. 52.5%-74.5%). Yet few women (19.2% vs. 5.3%) approved of abortion based on sex of the fetus. Even though the respondents were committed to abortion rights, they tended to find it personally hard, if not impossible, to terminate a pregnancy now. They spent considerable emotional and financial resources toward the wanted pregnancy, but, by choosing to undergo prenatal diagnosis, were willing to face the possibility of losing the pregnancy.

Project Redirection: making and measuring a difference.

Between 1980-86, a comprehensive program for disadvantaged adolescent mothers =or< 17 years old, designed to increase their self-esteem and skills leading to use of available social services and ultimately self-sufficiency, operated in community agencies in Boston, Massachusetts; Harlem in New York City; Phoenix, Arizona; and Riverside, California. Services were workshops, group and individual counseling, recreational activities, transportation assistance, child care, and activities with community women who acted as confidants and mentors. Topics of the workshops and counseling sessions included employability development, health, education, and life management. Each participant, her community woman, and program staff outlined an Individual Participant Plan based on her strengths and needs. The project did not duplicate services already existing in the community and referred the young mothers too those services as needed. The impact analysis showed the participants exhibited continuity and change over time. After 5 years, they were more likely to be economically self-sufficient (mean weekly earnings, $68 vs. $45, p<.1; Aid to Families with Dependent Children recipients, 49% vs. 59%) and had better parenting skills (mean home environment score 44 vs. 40, p<.001) than nonparticipants. According to the Behavior Problem Index, children of participants exhibited much better behavior than those of nonparticipants (score 50 vs. 20, p<.001). On the other hand, the project did not result in better educational attainment. Participants had the same percentage of young women who had a diploma or GED after 5 years as did nonparticipants (48%). In addition, 73% experienced at least 1 subsequent birth within the 5 years after participation. Participants had more children than nonparticipants (2.4 vs. 2, p<.01) mainly because they chose not to terminate their pregnancies. Perhaps this occurred because they received immediate emotional rewards from parenting. 66% of participants were not working and 49% received public assistance at the time of the 5-year interview. Mean annual household income was only $8844 for an average household of >4 members.

The world's women 1970-1990: trends and statistics.

5 UN agencies worked together to develop this statistical source book to generate awareness of women's status, to guide policy, to stimulate action, and to monitor progress toward improvements. The data clearly show that obvious differences between the worlds of men and women are women's role as childbearer and their almost complete responsibility for family care and household management. Overall, women have gained more control over their reproduction, but their responsibility to their family's survival and their own increased. Women tend to be the providers of last resort for families and themselves, often in hostile conditions. Women have more access to economic opportunities and accept greater economic roles, yet their economic employment often consists of subsistence agriculture and services with low productivity, is separate from men's work, and unequal to men's work. Economists do not consider much of the work women do as having any economic value so they do not even measure it. The beginning of each chapter states the core messages in 4-5 sentences. Each chapter consists of text accompanied by charts, tables, and/or regional stories. The 1st chapter covers women, families, and households. The 2nd chapter addresses the public life and leadership of women. Education and training dominate chapter 3. Health and childbearing are the topics of chapter 4 while housing, settlements, and the environment comprise chapter 5. The book concludes with a chapter on women's employment and the economy. The annexes include strategies for the advancement of women decided upon in Nairobi, Kenya in 1985, the text of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and geographical groupings of countries and areas. During the 1990s, we must invest in women to realize equitable and sustainable development.

Bangladesh population census, 1991: Bandarban zila.

This is one in a series of publications presenting results from the 1991 census of Bangladesh by zila (region). The data concern households, housing, sex distribution, age distribution, marital status, religion, literacy, educational status, and employment status. The data are presented separately for rural and urban areas. This volume concerns Bandarban zila; a separate volume in the Community Series is also devoted to Bandarban zila and presents further selected data at the thana, or minor administrative district, level. (ANNOTATION)

A national recipe for stupidity.

It is estimated that lead exposure has already cut in 1/2 the number of American children who might have had superior IQs: some 2 million children. The primary source for most urban children is exposure to soil and dust contaminated by leaded gasoline. Lead is also found in the plumbing of older buildings, some ceramic glazes, and canned goods. Blood lead levels and lead in soil are correlated with the density and amount of traffic in the city. Blood lead levels tend to rise in the summer and decline in the winter. The use of lead in paint peaked in the 1920s but remained in use for another 50 years. When leaded gasoline arrived millions of tons went into auto fuels: phasedowns starting in the 1970s have reduced lead emissions by about 90% to date. Lead in gasoline was dispersed into the air where it was ingested and absorbed. Humans are most vulnerable to the effects of lead during their first 6 years, when the brain is quickly developing. The current early toxicity standard is 25, but diminished intelligence has been observed from levels close to 10. A study reexamined young adults who had low-level lead exposure as children. 11 years after they were originally tested, their high school drop-out rate was 7 times higher than their peers' and they were almost 6 times likelier to have reading disabilities. The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) estimates that nearly 3 out of 4 children in New York City have high blood-lead levels; the EDF calculates that 122,406 children--about 1/2 the total--are at risk in Washington, D.C. There is an unsettling inverse correlation between the quantities of lead used in gasoline during the past 4 decades and national averages on Scholastic Aptitude Tests. Lead paint can be removed or managed so as to reduce children's exposure. The EDF calculates that it would cost $10 billion to clean up 2 million housing units; and the EPA has estimated that some 42 million residencies contain lead paint.

Chinese Koreans complete demographic transition.

The 1990 national census disclosed that there were 1,920,597 Koreans in China. There number increased 21% from 1,110, 000 in 1953 to 1,350,000 in 1964. The transition to low birth rate, low mortality rate, and low growth rate started in the mid-1960s and it was completed by 1974. Chinese Korean population increased form 1,350,000 in 1964 to 1,770,000 in 1982, and to 1,920,000 in 1990. Between 1982 and 1990, the average annual growth rate of the Han population, with the promotion of the 1-child policy, was 1.3%, while that of the Korean population who were allowed to have 2 children was only 1.0%. The total fertility rate (TFR) of Korean women in Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture decreased from 4.7 in 1965 to 1.9 in 1974, to 1.8 in 1981, and to 1.6 in 1983, and increasing to 1.9 in 1989. 89-90% of women were primiparas between 1973 and 1983. In 1989 in Jilin Province 71% of Korean women were primiparas, 26% were secundiparas, and 3% were tertiparas or had higher parity. The decelerated population growth of the Korean nationality is attributed to the popularization of compulsory education. Primary school became compulsory in 1952 and junior high school in 1958. The illiteracy rate of Koreans was only 11% in 1982, 21% lower than that of the Han nationality and 32% lower than that of other ethnic groups in China. The rate declined further to 7% in 1987. The illiteracy rate of Korean women in reproductive age was only 3%, while the national illiteracy rate of such women was 30%, and that of women in ethnic groups was 46%. The marriage age of Korean women was 20 in 1966 increasing to 23 by 1973 with the birth interval of over 5 years.

Provisional Census of India 1991.

Results of the provision census of India, 1991, are given for population growth, literacy, and urbanization. Results were made available only 1 month after the count was taken and then at the end of 1991. Data are collected by states (25) and 7 territories for literacy and population. Urban/rural, density, and literacy data are collected for 429 districts and 4689 towns. Population totaling 843.9 million makes it the 2nd most populous country in the world (16% of world population with 2.42% of land area). Population explosion occurred after the 1940s and the growth rate has declined somewhat to 23.50% during 1981-91. Demographic transition may be occurring. The highest population densities are in the Indus-Ganges-Brahmaputra plains in the north, the deltas of Mahanadi, Godavari, and Kavery rivers in the east, and Kerala districts in the west. The lowest growth rates were in Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the recent decennial period. Delhi has the highest growth rate. Literacy improved from 43.56% in 1981 to 52.11% in 1991. South India has higher literacy than the north areas. Kerala ranks the highest followed by Tamil Nadu. Female literacy increased the fastest. Low literacy is evident in Rajasthan (20.84%), Bihar (23.10%), and Uttar Pradesh (26.02%). The states with high female literacy also have low birth rates. Exceptions are Nagaland and Mizoram with high female literacy and high population growth rates due to the influences of tradition; Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Chandigarh also have high growth rates. Migration and immigration contribute to this growth. Urbanization has slowed. 25.72% (217 million) of the population are urban. The decline has been from 3.83 between 1971 and 1981 to 3.09 between 1981 and 1991. States with high population growth in the preceding decade slowed growth, and vice versa. The number of cities with >100,000 population increased from 216 in 1981 to 296 in 1991, and growth has increased from 60.42% to 65.20% between 1981 and 1991. The annual exponential growth rate of urban population is greater than in the rural population. Male number dominate in cities (822 females/1000 males). 23 million plus cities had 33% of Indian urban population in 1991; the largest populations were in Bombay (growth rate of >46%), Delhi (46%), Madras (25%), and Calcutta (19%).

Malnutrition and ignorance of weaning in rural Bangladesh.

Between February 1989 and March 1989, the Institute of Public Health surveyed 180 mothers of 4-12 month old infants living in the villages of Digarkanda and Bhatibarera of Sadar Upazila in Mymensingh District of Bangladesh to examine weaning practices and infant nutritional status. Almost all infants received breast milk. 61.67% of the mothers had never attended school. Only 3.89% of the infants had weight for ages =or> 80% of the Harvard Standard of nutrition which is considered normal. Thus 96.11% of the infants were malnourished. The mothers were in the process of weaning just 41.11% of the children. Only 3.89% of the infants being weaned had weight for ages =or> 80% of the Harvard Standard of nutrition and 37.22% of weanlings were malnourished. 49.99% of all mothers continued to exclusively breast feed because they were unaware of proper weaning age. Superstition and poverty were the reasons given for continuing to exclusively breast feed 5% and 3.89% of weanlings, respectively. Just 12.22% of mothers knew that they should wean 4-6 month olds. 31.67% and 36.11% of mothers thought the weaning age was 7-9 months and 10-12 months, respectively. Educated mothers were more likely to wean their infants at the proper age than were uneducated mothers (p<.05). Ignorance and not poverty was the leading cause of improper weaning practices and malnutrition among 4-12 month old infants in rural Mymensingh District in Bangladesh.

Occupational heterogeneity in female employment, Mexico City, 1970.

A researcher analyzed 1970 data on 1032 20-49 year old female workers in Mexico City to determine why and under what conditions occupational heterogeneity coexists and proliferates among women. Salaried employment was largely determined by marital status, age, education, and child care in order of significance. Currently married women were less likely to have salaried employment than all other women (probability, .81 vs. .91; p=.01). Women <35 years old had a greater probability of being salaried than those =or> 35 years old (probability, .93 vs. .86; p=.01). Women who did not finish primary school tended to not be salaried workers (p=.05), but completion of primary school did not determine salaried employment. The researcher used domestic servants and elderly in the household as proxies for child care. Women workers with domestic servants were significantly likely to be salaried (probability, .96 vs. .89; p=.01). On the other hand, women workers who had elderly living in the household were not likely to be salaried (probability, .87 vs. .92; p=.05). Both salaried and nonsalaried women workers tended to be at the bottom of the occupational structure, e.g., 43% of salaried workers were unskilled manual laborers compared with only 5.5% being skilled laborers. 41.3% of salaried workers supervised no one compared with only 10.2% who did have supervisory responsibility. Life cycle events (age, marital status, and family) determined nonsalaried work. 73% of nonsalaried workers were either independent workers with no employees or worked for their family for no pay. >33% of nonsalaried laborers worked from their homes. Almost all domestic servants (98.6%) earned less than the minimum wage. Most other salaried and nonsalaried workers earned less than minimum wage (43.5% and 67%, respectively). Only 38.2% and 20.9% of salaried and nonsalaried workers, respectively, made 1-2 times the minimum wage.

Indian experience of home based mothers card: ICMR task force study.

Health workers at 6 primary health centers in different areas of India introduced the home-based mothers card (HBMC) to 2446 pregnant and mostly illiterate women in November 1984-October 1985 and followed them for 2 years to evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of the HBMC among rural women. Overall retrieval of the HBMCs after 18 months was 89.2%. 66.9% had at least 1 maternal risk factor. The most common risk factors were previous abortions (7.8%), neonatal deaths (5.9%), and fetal deaths (5%). The risk factors associated with the highest perinatal mortality rates were eclampsia (133.3) and fetal deaths (118.2). The researchers learned that they needed to revise the criteria for identifying at-risk mothers by using risk factors associated with the higher risk of perinatal mortality. Women with 3-4 risk factors were more likely to experience perinatal mortality than those with 1-2 risk factors (39.7 and 56.5 vs. 122.5 and 105). Health workers should refer women at highest risk (3-4 risk factors) to a health care facility for delivery. Of the 66.9% at-risk mothers, only 10% experienced risk factors during delivery. The risk factors during delivery were associated with a high relative risk (RR) of perinatal death, e.g., RRs ranged from 1.8 to 4.6. Prenatal care can detect the 2 delivery risk factors with the highest perinatal mortality (multiple pregnancy and abnormal presentation). Health workers should also refer mothers with these risk factors to a health care facility. 78% of at-risk mothers who had been referred to a health facility did indeed go for referral care. Health workers at the centers found the HBMC to be helpful, but it would be more so if it were to include infant health. Anganwadi workers would be more accepting of the card if it had pictorial illustrations.

Demographic transition in Japan and the social and economic development of Asia.

In discussing the demographic transition in Japan and social and economic development in Asia, there is the suggestion that the stages in the Japanese transition may be useful is assessing other nations' progress. Japanese demographic transition occurred during rapid social and economic development. The birth and death rates for 1930 in Japan (32.4/1000 population) are comparable to the current birth rates in India (31.9) and the Philippines (35.9). The infant mortality rates in 1930 Japan (14.1/1000) are almost equal to levels in Bhutan (127) and Cambodia (129). Among the 39 Asian nations, the Philippines and India are about midway in the transition. 60 years ago Japan was not even at the level of the Bhutan and Cambodia, which are at the lowest levels of transition, and was much poorer than Asian nations today. The decline in the birth rate was a result of voluntary, individual decisions of the population. The commitment to childbearing reflected the ability to afford to educate and fulfill the responsibilities to society. This was possible in a capitalist society which incorporated the agricultural village communal ideology: unlike Western capitalist models. Since 1961, a public pension system and universal medical coverage and farmland reform account for the social development. The forthcoming social problem is how to adjust to the below replacement level fertility. A total fertility rate of 2.1 is needed for replacement level and Japan's fertility is 1.57. The factors related to the low birth rate and later marriage are identified as the high cost of education and the rapidly rising cost of housing in urban areas. The views of marriage have changed. Women choose a career over marriage, or marry later. There is also a lack of facilities for child care for working women. A change in the social conditions, which is the objective of the author, may affect the birth rate. If Japan has been able to accomplish the demographic transition and economic growth in 60 years, then with international cooperative effort, other Asian countries can do the same.

Risk factors for the development of persistent diarrhoea and malnutrition in Burmese children.

Researchers compared data on 67 1-50 month old children hospitalized for persistent diarrhea lasting >14 days which was complicated by kwashiorkor at North Okkalapa General Hospital in Yangon, Myanmar with data on 67 age and sex matched healthy children living in the same neighborhood to determine risk factors for the persistent diarrhea and severe malnutrition. Children from a low income household (50% of the cases becoming ill with persistent diarrhea and malnutrition as defines by the etiologic fractions and in order of degree of contribution: breast feeding on demand (.82 for 0-3 month olds and .78 for 3-6 month olds), feces within reach of the child (.66), ignorance about flies' role in transmitting diarrhea-causing organisms (.60), mother not using soap and water when washing child's hands (.58), defecation on floor (.55), dirty nails (.54), and ignorance of nonpotable water's role in transmitting diarrhea-causing organisms (0.51).

Safe childbirth needs more than medical services.

Obstetrician-gynecologists analyzed maternal mortality data from at least 1 rural area of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand to determine nonmedical factors contributing to maternal deaths. They also gathered data from Brunei and Singapore but the data were insufficient (only 3 deaths in Brunei and 0 in Singapore). Overall the leading causes of death were in order eclampsia/intracranial hemorrhage, postpartum hemorrhage, and sepsis. >33% of decreased mothers were <20 or >35 years old. Most mothers had lived in rural areas where there were few health care facilities, inadequate transportation, and much delay between emergence of a problem and medical attention. Lack of education was a risk factor, e.g., 40% of Thai mothers had no education. Most women in the Philippines and Indonesia worked long hours and hauled heavy loads. There was a considerable link between primiparae and grand multiparae and maternal mortality. 90%, 68%, and 59% of maternal deaths in Thailand, the Philippines, and Indonesia, respectively, were of these parities. Almost 66% of the women had not used contraceptives. Overall <33% of the women lived near medical facilities. In Indonesia, this figure was as high as 62%. 40%, 13%, and 9% in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, respectively, had no access to transportation to take them to a facility. 21%, 46%, and 30% in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand did not receive any prenatal care and 50% of mothers in Indonesia did not feel they needed prenatal care. Inappropriate delivery techniques also contributed to maternal deaths. 90% of deaths occurred after delivery. Considerable bleeding was a contributing factor in 62%, 55%, and 40% of maternal deaths in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand, respectively. A blood transfusion would have saved many of them.

Modelling demographic and socio-economic determinants of fertility in Poland.

Noting the complexity of specifying the determinants of female fertility, the author attempts to evaluate such determinants in Poland from both the macro and micro perspectives. This study is helpful in formulating and estimating econometric models. Results corroborate the positive dependence of fertility on higher level of women's education. Incomes show minimal influence upon fertility decisions, and birth timing differs on the basis of degree of a woman's economic activity. Both macro and micro approaches are deemed reasonable in exploring the demographic, economic, and social conditions of fertility. The most suitable approach is, however, dictated by the ultimate aim of the modeling.

Profile of American Jewry: insights from the 1990 National Jewish Population Survey.

Results are presented from the 1990 National Jewish Population Survey conducted in the United States by the Council of Jewish Federations. The author describes the survey methodology, with a focus on the difficulties encountered in categorizing various degrees of Jewishness for enumeration purposes. Data are then included on spatial distribution, internal migration, age composition, sex distribution, generational status, educational level, employment, fertility trends, levels of religious involvement, visits to Israel, and marriage patterns, including intermarriage. Some comparisons with the results of the survey conducted in 1970 are made.

[Ministerial Resolution No. 250-90-ED of 28 February 1990 establishing the National Commission on the International Literacy Year in Peru]

This Peru Resolution establishes the National Commission on the International Literacy Year, composed of representatives of various private and public organizations. It also establishes regional, departmental, and local literacy commissions. The objective of all of these commissions is to formulate, execute, and evaluate a work plan directed toward the attainment of the objectives of the International Literacy Year. These objectives are 1) to promote the effective integration of various nongovernmental sectors and organizations for the purpose of mobilizing and energizing social forces to achieve the literacy goal, 2) to sensitize public opinion to its participation in literacy activities, 3) to strengthen cooperation between state and private organizations in the joint the battle against illiteracy, and 4) to promote activities giving priority in attention to women and geographic areas that have the greatest number of illiterate people.

Order No. R-156 of 21 September 1989 creating an ad-hoc committee in charge of the Integral Plan for the Elimination of Illiteracy in Mauritania.

This Order creates an ad-hoc committee in charge of the Mauritanian Integral Plan for the Elimination of Illiteracy, which is to devise a plan for eliminating illiteracy, submit it to preliminary procedures before its adoption by the competent authorities, and ensure its supervision and evaluation. Further provisions of the Order set forth the composition of the committee.

Gender, education, and fertility: a cross-national analysis of Sub-Saharan African nations.

According to the demographic transition theory and the wealth flows model, it is expected that fertility will decline with socioeconomic development, manifested in part through increasingly greater proportions of the population with formal education. Since their independence in the 1960s, most sub-Saharan African nations have experienced rapid changes in educational levels. However, recent estimates indicate that high levels of fertility are being maintained as reflected in the high rates of population increase of approximately 3%/year. Controlling for socioeconomic development as measured by per capita energy consumption and percentage of labor force in agriculture, this article examines the relationship between education and fertility for men and women in 37 sub-Saharan nations. Results indicate that primary school enrollment in 1960 and 1980 for both males and females had a weak negative and nonsignificant relationship with the total fertility rate 15-30 years later. Secondary school enrollment in 1960 for both males and females had weak relationships with the total fertility rate. However, secondary school enrollment for males in 1980 had a significant negative effect on the total fertility rate 10-25 years later. Implications are discussed. (author's)

Delayed childbearing in contemporary Spain: trends and differentials.

Data from the 1985 Spanish Survey of Fertility including 8789 women aged 18-49 years is used to examine the timing of 1st births from marriage. Premarital births are excluded. Life table estimates are used to describe trends and differentials. A piecewise constant hazard model, which assumes a constant transition rate within each duration segment (0-7, 8-12, 13-18, 19-24, 25-36, and 37-48 months), and discrete-time hazard models are used in the analysis. Analysis is devoted to the trends in the timing of 1st birth, differentials in the timing of transition to 1st birth as affected by age at marriage, education, labor force participation before marriage, religiosity, number of siblings, place of residence, and region. Fertility has declined from 2.7 in 1975 to 1.3 in 1990 while the country adapted to a democratic political process, legalization of contraceptives, and relaxation of gender roles. There was rapid family formation during the 1960s and 1970s. Recent marriage cohorts have been delaying the birth of a 1st child and birth control has increased. Premarital conceptions have increased. Differentials in timing of 1st birth did not affect fertility because delayers still had children. Postponement of childbearing is new to Spain and may reflect unstable economic conditions or security of women's position in the labor market. Cultural norms have also changed to define an appropriate time for childbearing as not immediately after marriage. Life table estimates show the median age of women at 1st birth as 25.6 years in the early 1980s compared to 24.6 years in the later 1970s. The interquartile timing of 1st births ranged from 14 months for the 1970-74 birth cohort to 26 months for the 1980-83 cohort. Women who married in the 1960s and early 1970s had their 1st child within the 1st year of marriage. Observations are that motherhood remains unchanged, timing reflects intercohort differences, postponement occurs after 1975, and differentials are not constant across marriage duration. Marriage cohort composition has changed to women with higher education, lower religiosity, smaller families of origin, and increasing labor participation before marriage, which shows in the life table estimates to postponement. The rate differentials between 1965-69 and 1970-74 cohorts are statistically significant in the multivariate model.

Landholding and human fertility in Rwanda.

Data from the Rwanda Non-Farm Strategies Survey, 1988, on 1019 households was used to investigate the direct and indirect relationship between landholding and fertility (number of living children) in a rural population. Landholders are considered separately as owners and owner-renters. It is expected that the size of landholding will be positively related to fertility. The relationship will be lower for owners than those who rent all or some of their land. Fertility will be lower due to husbands' absence from the household; thus temporary migration is an intervening variable. Control variables are wife's marriage age and labor force participation, and age and education of both husbands and wives. Specific objectives were to investigate the relationship between landholding and fertility, the validity of the land-labor and land-security hypothesis in an African context, and family size preferences. Findings support the land-labor hypothesis but not the land-security hypothesis. There are 3.62 living children in households operating with < .5 hectares of land, while there are 5.88 children in households with 2.0 hectares or more of land. The difference is significant. Other determinants of fertility are wife's age and marriage age; wife's education is related to a decline in fertility. Fertility is 3.85 for women with primary or higher education and 5.12 for women with no schooling. There was no relationship with fertility for husbands' education, husbands' absence, and women labor force participation, which does not follow the pattern of other studies in other regions of the world. The indirect effects of age and husband's education enhance the positive relationship between landholding and fertility. The lack of support for the land-security hypothesis may be explained by the small size of farms (1.2 hectares), the tradition of transfer of land to married children, and the social security provided by children for aging parents. Average fertility among owner and owner-renters is similar. There are the same influences on fertility and zero order correlations are the same (.33 and .32) and betas as similar (.18 and .26). The preference for parents is for < 6 children for the next generation but 6 or more for their own. Husbands recommend more children than wives, but adult children plan to lower their fertility. Girls have a positive attitude toward family planning.

The rural-urban difference in contraceptive use in Pakistan: the effects of women's literacy and desired fertility.

This work was prepared as a doctoral dissertation at Michigan State University. (ANNOTATION)

Forgone labor participation and earning due to childbearing among Norwegian women.

"Individual-level retrospective data from the Family and Occupation Survey of 1988 are used to assess the time diverted from gainful employment because of the presence of children in two Norwegian birth cohorts. We find that a two-child mother born in 1950, whose births occurred in her early twenties, lost 6.6 woman-years up to age 37, compared to a childless woman. By matching information on registered income with the survey data, we estimate that her lost income amounts to $151,000 at 1990 prices. After taxation the loss is $98,000. Women with fewer than 12 years of schooling seem to forgo more labor market activity by reason of childbearing than do their better-educated counterparts. The pattern is less clear with respect to the loss of income." (author's) (EXCERPT)

Attitudes towards fertility control.

"The present work aims to determine...the effectiveness of traditional mixed and modern attitudes towards fertility. Here fertility refers to the number of children actually born to a woman. Randomly chosen 400 women belonging to different ethnic strains from Sagar town [India] constitute the data for the present study. The scaling technique is devised to obtain accurate values for fertility noticed among different populations. Thus an attempt has been made to study whether education, income, caste, age and age at marriage have direct association with fertility." (EXCERPT)

[Parents' education and number of children]

"The influence of the parents' education on the number of children is observed, for the year 1981 (census year), in all complete families (marital partners with children) in Yugoslavia." The results indicate that where educational levels are low, educational status affects fertility within specific families without affecting fertility much as a whole. In societies where education is widespread, education has both direct and indirect effects on fertility. (SUMMARY IN ENG) (EXCERPT)

Modernization and the quality of the Chinese population.

"In this article, the author discusses the relationship between modernization and the quality of population. The current status of population quality in China will be analyzed and...the role of population quality in the process of modernization in the country will be [studied]." Population quality is defined as including health, infant mortality, and educational status. (EXCERPT)

Demographic transition in Indonesia: a projection into the year 2020.

The authors project changes in the demographic characteristics of the population of Indonesia to the year 2020. Topics examined include population size, demographic aging, urbanization, educational status, morbidity, and the sex ratio. The introductory text is accompanied by extensive statistical data in tables and charts. (ANNOTATION)

Schooling choices and demographic cycles.

"This paper examines the effect of demographic cycles on schooling choices and the timing of school completion. Utilizing data from the [U.S.] National Longitudinal Surveys of Labor Market Experience and from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, we find that men and women born during the upswing of a demographic cycle obtain more schooling and take longer to finish a year of schooling than comparable individuals born during the downswing of a demographic cycle. The patterns that we document are more complex than would be predicted by any of the theoretical models of educational responses to demographic cycles that have been presented in the literature." (EXCERPT)

A global analysis of life expectancy and infant mortality.

This is the first in a series of monographs concerning the relationships among socioeconomic factors and development. "The objectives of this monograph are: to identify those levels of education and health services that have the greatest impact on life expectancy and infant mortality, to use the results to derive statistically based criteria for identifying development sectors with the greatest impact on life expectancy and infant mortality, [and] to provide a comparative, quantitative planning tool to less developed countries and aid agencies in donor countries for the allocation of resources....Hypotheses were developed for the relationship between education, health services and nutrition...using 1985 data [for 129 countries]." The results are compared with selected indexes found in published sources. (EXCERPT)

Census of India 1991, Series 8: Haryana. Paper 1 of 1991: provisional population totals.

This is one in a series of publications presenting results from the 1991 census of India at the state level. This paper provides provisional population totals for Haryana and includes data on spatial distribution, sex ratio, growth rates, and population density by district; changes since 1901; urban agglomerations; and literacy. (ANNOTATION)

Report on the 1986 Swaziland population census. Vol. 3: statistical tables.

This report presents detailed results from the 1986 census of Swaziland. The data concern age and sex distribution, land tenure, citizenship, marital status, literacy, school attendance, educational status, economic activity, labor force, fertility, place of birth, former place of residence, Swazi population living abroad, and housing. Most data are provided separately by rural or urban area and by administrative or ecological region. (ANNOTATION)

Socio-economic mortality differences in Finland 1981-90.

"This study describes socio-economic differences in mortality and related changes in Finland primarily during the period 1981-90. The study follows an earlier report concerning the development of mortality according to education and occupational class during the period 1971-85....The 1990 report dealt with mortality differences in three separate age groups: children aged 5 to 14, middle-aged persons (35-64) and elderly persons (60 and above). These groups are also included in the present study. In addition, mortality data are now provided for infants under the age of 1 and young people aged 15 to 34." (EXCERPT)

Reproductive revolution in Asia.

1/2 of Asia is in a state of reproductive revolution. The total fertility rate (TFR) of China, Japan, the 2 Koreas, and Thailand is now 2.1-2.2 and at biological replacement. Fertility is also declining rapidly in some Indonesian provinces, and Indonesia has virtually universal education as a result. These and other surprising changes were reported at the 4th Asia and Pacific Population Conference (August 19-27), which was sponsored by ESCAP (the UN Economic and Social commission for Asia). The economies of those Asian countries with smaller families are surging forward, although the conference still drew attention to the need for family planning services, even where fertility has begun to fall. By contrast, average family size is twice as large in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh (TFR 4.3), and the absolute number of poor and illiterate people is increasing. Dr. Nafis Sadik, Executive Director of the UN Population fund, a cosponsor of the meeting, emphasized that: "The world is at crossroads. Which road it takes and how fast it travels down that road will determine, to a large extent, the rapidity with which developing countries attain sustained economic growth." Ms. Seiko Takahashi (Deputy Executive Director of ESCAP) acknowledged that there has been "no success alleviating poverty", since the 1st Asian Population Conference in 1963. In the past decade, per capita income has fallen in a number of countries with rapid population growth. One important consequence of the deepening demographic division within Asia is the rise in economic refugees. Ronald Skeldon of the University of Hong Kong called it "the major issue of the 1990s". Labor migrants are entering Thailand from Burma, Vietnam, and Indonesia, which, along with the migration of prostitutes, is helping the spread of HIV. Asian populations will continue to grow significantly in areas with declining fertility as well as areas where birth rates remain high. Japan, for example, achieved biological replacement in 1956, but, because of the youthful population a that time, it will take until the year 2009 for the country to achieve zero population growth. Even with its widespread 1-child policy, the population of China will grow by 220 million in the next 20 years. Where fertility is declining, the population structure will change. By 2000 AD Asia will contain a remarkable 86% of the world's population over the age of 65. The age group the Japanese charmingly call the "old-old" (age 75 plus) will outnumber the "young-old (age 65-75). Nevertheless, the process of adjustment to an aging population, whilst challenging, will be trivial beside the difficulties raised by further population growth in the high fertility countries. Analysis suggests that Bangladesh may have already entered a demographic trap: it may just not be able to support the projected doubling of its current 112 million in the next 28 years--a population equivalent to that of the US in a land the area of North Carolina. The variable that separates high and low fertility countries and that is perhaps most open to immediate change is family planning. The centralized government programs, such as that of Pakistan, have consistently failed to achieve their goals, whilst the community-based entrepreneurial services, such as in Thailand, Korea, and Indonesia, have been spectacular successes. Intergovernmental conferences are often strong on rhetoric but weak on analysis. The stated theme of the conference was Population and Sustainable Development: goals and strategies into the 21st century. The greater technical, political, and fiscal challenge of the 21st century for Asia--as for the rest of the world--is likely to be the transition from the current rapid use of nonrenewable resources to a biologically sustainable economy. Yet the one conference did not deal with the issue in any depth. As one Asian participant put it in a lobby conversation, "This is not an ESCAP conference, it is a NATO meeting--no action, talk only]" (full text)

Study faults Third World priorities.

Poor countries could free $50 billion a year for development if they changed their own spending priorities, according to a report issued yesterday by the UN Development Program. The report blames high military spending and poor distribution of social services for much of the world's suffering and says that the developing world should be more concerned with its own faults than with parsimonious donors or world capital shortages. "The lack of political will--not financial resources--is the real cause behind human neglect," said the program's administrator, William H. Draper III, in unveiling the report. The report singled out countries both for neglecting human development and for restricting freedoms. In the latter category, the report revived and updated a "human-freedom index" that ranked Sweden 1st, the US 13th and Iraq last on the basis of 40 indicators. Also near the bottom were Libya, Romania, Ethiopia and China; only slightly higher were some US allies in the Persian Gulf War, such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The Human Development Report was introduced last year as a corrective to traditional measurements of wellbeing that rely on economic output per person. The study uses a human development index that "gives as much weight to life expectancy and education as to basic purchasing power" and in doing so reveals sharp contrasts between nations with similar levels of wealth. In the West African nation of Sierra Leone, for example, per capita income is about the same as in Nigeria or Kenya, but Sierra Leone's 13% literacy rate is 1/3 that of Nigeria and 1/5 that of Kenya. Life expectancy in Sierra Leone is 42 years, 10 fewer than in Nigeria and 18 fewer than in Kenya. Brazil has twice the per capita economic output as Jamaica, but a Brazilian child's chances of dying before the age of 5 are 4 times greater. Saudi Arabia has 15 times the per capita income of Sri Lanka, but a greater proportion of Sri Lankans than Saudis can read and write. This year's report also noted: Military spending in developing countries has risen 7.5% a year since 1960, and a freeze at current levels would give the 3rd World a "peace dividend" of $15 billion a year for nonmilitary spending. Many of the world's poorest countries--including Angola, Chad, Pakistan, Peru, Syria, Uganda and Zaire--spend twice as much on their military as they do on health and education, and Iraq spent 7 times as much. Draper, cochairman of the Bush presidential campaign as 1988, criticized an administration proposal to allow use of Export-Import Bank credits for arms, saying it was "wrong" and "absolutely crazy." Developing countries devote less than 10% of their budgets to education, primary health care, clean water, family planning and social services. Governments should sell state-owned enterprises. In Cameroon, for example, the losses of state-owned companies exceed the total oil revenue of the government. (full text)

Black and white differences in first marriage among women: influence of contextual factors.

This study examines the influence of contextual factors on 1st marriage and racial differences in marriage patterns among females. The analysis was conducted in a 2-level framework where structural variables were incorporated into an individual model. The evidence shows a strong linkage between the social context and individual marriage behavior. This linkage provides new insights about racial differences inmarriage patterns. A substantial portion of the racial gap is attributed to the fact that black females more often live in areas with a low centrality of marriage and face a more restricted marriage market than do white females. The findings reveal that within the same favorable marital pool which takes into account both age and educational attributes of potential partners,. black females exhibit a higher rate of marrying than white females. The findings also show that black and white females respond to the contextual factors differently. While female economic opportunities have a negative impact on the propensity for marriage for white females, these factors have little effect on black women. (author's)

Testimony before the House Subcommittee on Census and Population.

The author testifies on America's changing demographic profile to the U.S House Subcommittee on Census and Population. Based upon 1990 census data, he focuses upon 3 important demographic phenomena in the U.S. First, the U.S. population has become more ethnically and racially diverse. The notions of both ethnic minority and America's melting pot society are rapidly growing obsolete. While varying between metropolitan areas, an ethnic mosaic becomes increasingly evident across the country, with ethnic groups choosing to not abandon their cultural identities in favor of a more uniform Americanism. This cultural and demographic mosaic is most visible in California, yet is moving to other states. Political institutions and schools will have to adapt to this new, more culturally diverse America. Second, the nation must address the existence and needs of the many poor children and youths largely concentrated within families headed by women. Steps must be taken to alleviate poverty and poor health among these children and youths so that they may have the opportunity to attend school and be productive members of American society. Third, the American population is rapidly aging. Attention must be placed on individuals' future living arrangements and the local impact of large populations of aged residents.

A new EPI strategy to reach high risk urban children in Bangladesh: urban volunteers.

Researchers analyzed March 1987-March 1988 data on 969 15-45 year old women and 1084 0-24 month old children collected by 29 urban mostly illiterate woman volunteers from slum communities in Dhaka, Bangladesh to evaluate the record keeping and referral system used for immunization outreach activities. The volunteers had undergone an 8-day training program in immunization education, accurate record keeping on immunizations, and follow-up activities. Considerable flooding in some communities for as long as 2 months kept the volunteers from reaching their target. Each volunteer referred a mean of 2.9 women and 3.2 children/month for immunizations which was less than the target of 5 each. Yet coverage rates were high: 96% of women referred received 2 doses of tetanus toxoid and 87% of children had completed the full series of immunizations. Illiterate women were basically as capable as literate women in referring clients for immunizations (5.7 clients/month vs. 6.3 clients/month) and in clients achieving full series of immunizations (90% vs. 93%). The pilot project had a strong supervisory component (supervisor/volunteer ratio 1:30) resulting in reasonable accuracy of record keeping and educational messages. These results demonstrated that this record keeping and referral system allowed illiterate and semiliterate volunteers to follow individual clients for a long period. It also showed that these low income urban women contributed to relatively low dropout rates associated with immunization (9% for children and 4% for women).

The movement of labor in Chinese rural areas: with a focus on developed regions.

Recent Chinese economic reforms target both agrarian and urban sectors. This paper discusses employment structure change in rural areas and the interindustry movement of labor, with particular attention to relevant institutional aspects. The residencies and population system and the employment-welfare-insurance system are reviewed. Socioeconomic structure and labor market mechanisms in rural areas are considered as the basis for the movement of labor; forms of employment and labor market characteristics in rural areas are identified; and factors influencing job-related behavior of the work force in agricultural households, as well as mechanisms regulating interindustry movement of the work force are quantified. These issues are investigated only for the Sunan area and suburban villages near Shanghai. Review suggests that labor force movement within China's rural areas has gained momentum despite institutional limitations. The rural employment structure has changed to impact the entire national economy. Village and township enterprises have helped raise income levels of farming households, industrialize and urbanize rural areas, and strengthen ties between rural and urban areas. To sustain growth in rural and national economies, however, greater differentiation is needed between the functions of administrative and economic sectors, competitive principles should be introduced in rural areas, and institutional restrictions on population and labor force movements should be relaxed.

Myths about HIV transmission: who endorse them, why do they and what are the consequences?

Despite the Dutch population having been informed in a clear and straightforward manner about HIV and AIDS, some people persist in believing and spreading myths about HIV transmission and prevention. Such misinformation and behavior may impede efforts to prevent HIV transmission and encourage discrimination against the infected. A sample of 1001 people who, respectively, believed or disbelieved that HIV may be transmitted via a mosquito bite were interviewed in a national population survey. Those who were most likely to believe in this mode of transmission were in steady monogamous relationships or without sexual contact, women, relatively young, of lower educational level, of lower social class, or not residing in major urban cities. Relatively more myths were endorsed by those regularly attending religious services, self-labeling as exclusively heterosexual, and those who vote conservative. Typically, these people had been confronted less with AIDS, had more restrictive attitudes about sexuality, were generally less well-informed about AIDS, and felt that they possessed insufficient knowledge about transmission prevention. Belief in transmission via mosquito did not provoke respondent worry about potential past or future infection, and they perceived AIDS as a threat to neither the immediate community nor society. This paper notes that educating people should not be viewed as a mechanical, 1-way process, and that individuals are also subject to alternative sources of information. Studying the relationship between the endorsement of myths and behavioral intentions might help to identify the point at which it becomes relevant to publicly address myths within the population.

A review of Senegal's development policies.

Economic development has stalled in Senegal. A complex, centralized government bureaucracy pours the nation's resources into the least productive, least viable, and least competitive sectors. Population growth outpaces the rate of economic growth and food supply. Urbanization continues and living standards decline. Over the years, the service sector has grown at the expense of primary sector enterprise, while secondary sector industry has maintained a constant 20% proportion of the nation's economic activity. The tertiary sector, however, is largely based on low levels of productivity and limited technology. Senegal fails to maximize its primary sector potential to produce cotton, maize, and export vegetables. The government instead subsidizes the inefficient and competitively disadvantaged production of irrigated rice, tomato, and groundnuts. Textiles are produced only in protected local markets, while fish processing has declined or stagnated. Poor economic development policies therefore lie at the heart of Senegal's economic woes. Price signals fail to reach producers, the currency is overvalued, overly complex administrative controls reign over businesses, and a low and falling level of general education exists. Greater support of adaptive agricultural research, institutional reform, and decentralized private sector policies are part of massive institutional and policy changes recommended for Senegal.

The effect of household structure on women's economic activity and fertility: evidence from recent mothers in urban Mexico.

This study examines the effect of the presence of a "mother substitute" in the household on urban women's participation in the labor force and fertility in Mexico in 1982. Data were obtained from the 1982 Mexican National Demographic Survey on reproductive history, educational status, employment status, and household structure for a subsample of 2746 urban women who were married (90%) or in a consensual union (10%) and had had a child within the prior 5 years. Theoretically, women with higher value of market time, lower household income, and lower value of nonmarket time will more likely be working women. Women had 3.4 surviving children, 83% used contraceptives, and 15% were employed. Analysis involved use of reduced form equations to model the joint determination of labor force participation and fertility; justification of this method is given. Husband's education was a proxy for income level. Cost of child rearing is figured as the mother's number of children >5 years and household structure. "Mother substitute" was an additional unemployed female aged >13 years. An imputed wage for all women in the sample is used to measure the value of time in the labor force. Probit regression estimation methods revealed that mothers were more likely to be working when their wage offers were higher. Those with a caretaker in the household and with a less well-educated husband are also more likely to work. Those more likely to be employed also had few children 6-12 years and more children >13 years. In the fully reduced form of the equation, determinants of the wage offer (education, age, region) were substituted for the instrumental variable; the results were consistent. An additional woman in the household was significantly positively related to the likelihood of women working. In the reduced form fertility equation, women who were younger, better educated, with more children, and with better educated partners were less likely to have more than 1 child born within the last 5 years. The implication from the negative coefficient of the household-structure variable is that women with additional caretakers are less likely to have more than 1 young child. The causes are explained. Mother substitutes increase the likelihood of working women and do not increase the likelihood of having more children, particularly among nonemployed mothers, which differs from US results. Future research should refine the measure of mother substitute and account for her presence in the household.

Prevalence of disabilities in a national sample of 7-year-old Israeli children.

The prevalence of chronic conditions and illnesses which cause disability in Israeli Jewish children age 7 who were born in 1975 was studied on the basis of a national sample (n=7739). 80 medical conditions which cause disability were defined and the study showed a total disability rate of 17.5%, higher than that reported on a similar national sample of 3 year olds (prevalence=6.9%). The % of disabilities among very low birth weight children and those with family problems was 4 times greater than among the total population. Mild retardation and undefined learning problems were more prevalent among children of mothers with low educational level and among children whose birth order was 4th or greater. Asthma and spastic bronchitis were more prevalent among children whose mothers were of European/American origin (p<0.05). Behavior and mental disorders, learning problems, and speech and language disorders were more prevalent among male children. 2/3 of the children with a diagnosed problem also had at least 1 functional disability. There were somewhat more children from lower social classes in the special education schools than there were in the national sample. Increased prevalence of disabilities among children of very low birth weight, low maternal educational level, high birth order, those from families whose origin is Asian/African, and those from families with intrafamilial problems define those children who are at risk for disabilities and for placement in special education schools. (author's modified)

The role of the village midwife in detection of high risk pregnancies and newborns.

Between March 1985 and August 1986, researchers observed 40 mostly illiterate, village midwives (VMs) in 48 villages about 40 km from Khartoum, Sudan to determine baseline conditions so health officials could design interventions to reduce perinatal, neonatal, and maternal mortality. The health officials also were to use their observations to develop an inexpensive, workable, and simple surveillance system. Intervention activities began between August 1986 and April 1988. They included weekly VM prenatal clinics, creation of a referral system from the VM to the rural and.or the central hospital, training VMs to screen the pregnant women and newborns for high risk clinical factors (weight changes, anemia, edema, increased blood pressure, proteinuria, birth weight, and congenital abnormalities). Pregnancy outcomes were most favorable for 20-30 year old women of parity 1-4. Women at highest risk were teenagers, 1st pregnancy after age 35, grand multigravidas, those with a twin pregnancy, whose last pregnancy had a poor outcome, and those who were illiterate. Perinatal mortality fell 25% (p<.05) during the 3rd year. Since there was no control population, researchers could not confirm that improvement was due to the interventions. This prospective study indicated that VMs can learn and improve skills in maternity and child health (MCH) and primary health care, effectively monitor pregnancy, refer cases, make accurate reports, and work together well with other health workers. The study demonstrated the need for a national program to improve MCH skills of VMs to establish a surveillance system with pictures to monitor pregnancy, delivery, and newborn care.

Health in education for all: enabling school-age children and adults for healthy living.

Commentary is provided on the objectives of health for all as it is linked to education for all. Health education in developed and developing countries is necessary for 1) in-school youth, 2) out-of-school youth, and 3) adult literacy and education. After a general statement of what is involved in educating children for healthy living, international health policy recommendations for strong national policy support of health education are presented. Examples of health learning experiences in school are given for the US, Colombia, Uganda, Chile, Bolivia, Senegal, Syria, Swaziland, and other countries. Opportunities that augment health education curriculum are a sanitary school environment, maintenance of a school health service, nutritious meals at school, a positive social environment with congenial relationships, and after-school sports and group activities. Links with the community are important for student training and transmission of knowledge and healthy practices to others. Specific attention must be paid to AIDS education, nutrition education, and water supply and sanitation. 8 challenges for action are identified. Health education for out-of-school children (105 million children 6-11 years in 1985) is equally important, particularly since 70% are in developing countries and 60% are girls. The numbers are increasing in spite of UNESCO's efforts to mobilize nations to place health education on national agendas. Most out-of-school youth are served by private organizational efforts. Many of these children are destitute without families or from very poor landless families in rural areas. Brazil's program for street youth and Bangladesh's program for functional literacy in short-term, part-time learning help to fill the need. Underprivileged children also reside in urban areas and may not value or be able to afford school. The health sector needs to identify target groups and programs that are appropriate to children's requirements. Information is needed on health hazards, skills to avoid hazards, and a supportive environment. 9 points for action are identified. Adult literacy programs are necessary for survival and improving the quality of life. Joint ventures with other development efforts are common. Women's functional literacy is a separate challenge. 5 actions are identified. A worldwide and multisectoral commitment is needed.

Fertility differentials in rural Sierra Leone: demographic and socioeconomic effects.

Multiple regression analysis with an ordinary least squares model was used to examine the demographic and socioeconomic determinants of fertility in rural Sierra Leone among a sample of 2000 women aged 15-49 years and 680 husbands in 1979. Size of place of current residence was of particular interest. The primary sampling unit (PSU) was proportionately sampled and systematically included chiefdoms for the Dasse, Kamajei, Kori, and Kowa in Moyamba District. Villages and towns were also sampled in the 3-stage probability sample. A wide selection of variables were collected; 11 variables were used in the analysis: children ever born as the dependent variable; husband's tribal affiliation, his religion, and size of place of current residence as background variables; educational levels of the respondent and her husband, reported annual household income, and wife's occupation; and age at marriage, infant and child mortality, and desired family size. The age structure was similar and small sample sizes for place limit the use of age grouping. Specification of each variable is given. The results reveal that in the full equation with all 11 variables, only size of place of residence is statistically significant (p = .10) and positively affecting fertility. Only opportunity cost to the wife (women working in nonagricultural jobs and educational attainment) negatively influences fertility as expected. Income effects are insignificant and in the wrong direction. Demographic influences are in the expected direction. In the analysis by size of place (small, 0-499; intermediate, 500-1999; and large, >2000), variance is demonstrated in the importance of explanatory variables. Background variables have coefficients hovering around 0. Opportunity cost (nonagricultural employment) is strong,and significantly negative only in large places. Household's infant and child mortality is significant and positive in all places. Desired family size is similar (positive and significant), but a stronger relationship occurs in larger places. Age at marriage is important only in large places, and child mortality less important. Results are similar to Snyder's but differ in that income does not have an effect, and similar to Ketkar's in finding no consistent relationship between education and fertility. Larger places have higher fertility levels, but respond to different influences, perhaps due to filtering of urban type determinants into large rural places.

An occupational health programme for adults and children in the carpet weaving industry, Mirzapur, India: a case study in the informal sector.

This case study is the 2nd on the occupational health program of the Indo-Dutch project in India. The research purpose was to systematically analyze the health hazards in the formal and informal sector of the carpet weaving industry, and to describe the Indo-Dutch Occupational Health Program's (OHP) interventions in the informal sector, which is not protected by health regulations. The project was initiated in January 1991 in Kanpur and Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh State, India. The system of carpet weaving is described; noted is the separation between manufacturer and weaver and the system of extending monetary advances to weavers, which prevents sale of carpets to the best markets. There is no compensation for work stoppages or extra work forced by the employer. The average wage has been Rs.15-20/day for the last 10-15 years; wages are paid by work completed. Many weavers are Muslims, but weaving is also popular among agricultural castes. Since carpet weaving is a family based home industry children are involved in opening the yarn and spinning the warp. In poor rural regions, children are also hired as bonded laborers; a summary of child labor is provided and the attempts to combat it are described, including the Indo-Dutch action. A study population of 200 weavers was selected randomly in Mirzapur city and matched to nonweavers in the Rambaugh area; questionnaires were administered on the physical conditions of the loom shed, working conditions, and health. A physical examination was performed including a check for peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR). The results showed that OHP improved conditions and organized community support for health programs; this finding is thought to improve the chances of incorporating OHP features into the national Urban Basic Services for the Poor program for 1991-92. Child laborers were given the opportunity for formal and nonformal education and time to socialize. The mean age of workers was 27 years. Most are illiterate or with a primary education. The span of work life is 13.4 years due to hazards. Cough, backache, and eye problems were common complaints. PEFR was abnormally low (<80% of the expected rate) for 19% of weavers. The OHP intervention is presented: the literacy and education component, the 7 awareness camps, the health post, provision of glasses and improved lighting, and formation of a neighborhood association.

A bioeconomic analysis of wage relationships: evidence from rural Guatemala.

Human capital theory holds that improving people's nutritional status increases their ability to perform strenuous labor, thereby bringing about global economic benefit. Some confusion exists, however, over when in the life cycle nutritional improvements would be most beneficial. Addressing this research void, this paper models physical work capacity in a rural Guatemalan population as a function of long- and short-term nutritional status. The effect of physical work capacity, potential work experience, literacy, and native intelligence on rural wages is then measured for the same population. Long-term nutrition was found to be a strong determinant of individual work capacity, but not short-term nutrition. Further, capacity for physical work is not a significant determinant of wages, but intellectual capital is rewarded in the labor market. While no direct correlation was found between long-term nutrition and wages, long-term nutrition has a significant effect on wages through its interaction with the development of intellectual capital.

The process of fertility transition in China: fertility differentials in Shanghai, 1950-85.

In the examination of the processes of fertility transition between 1950 and 1985 in urban and rural Shanghai, China, 2 models are constructed to reflect the main effect and the interactive effect of marriage cohorts and occupational status on timing of marriage. Data were obtained from the 1985 Shanghai In-depth Fertility Survey (phase I) of 4143 ever married women. Economic structural variables, fertility related variables, and family planning (FP) program variables are discussed as affecting the timing of marriage. The hypotheses stated, for instance, that professionals, administrators, and skilled urban workers would marry later than unskilled workers, that rural white-collar workers would marry the latest and peasants the earliest. Occupational group differences in timing of marriage were expected to decline after 1970. Economic opportunities are theorized to affect the timing of marriage; in China, it is theorized that opportunity is related to social hierarchy. The results show that housing availability affected the timing of marriage, i.e., patrilocal housing availability encouraged early marriage, while matrilocal housing delayed marriage in urban areas. In rural areas, both patrilocal and matrilocal co-residence lead to early marriage. Population policy affected timing of marriage; after 1970 in urban areas, there was a shift to later marriage and stabilization around 25 years even after the new 1980 law. In rural areas, there was a relaxation to earlier marriage after 1980. Higher educational levels of a father affected daughter's later age at marriage. Residence in towns in rural areas meant later marriage due to exposure to modern ideas and culture. Contraceptive use was found to follow a controlled fertility regimen regardless of the 4 occupational groups. Contraceptive use earlier in the family formation cycle was more prevalent among professionals and administrators. Logistic regressions revealed that occupational differentials behaved similarly regardless of policy changes and cohort differences; the odds of initiating contraceptive use in an early family formation stage was 3 times more likely for the later marriage cohort 1964-69, and 10 times later for the 1970-74 cohort. There was also a controlled fertility regime for rural women. Occupational groups had adopted different family formation patterns prior to 1970. The impact of FP on fertility decline was effective regardless of economic development after 1970.

Characteristics and behaviour of migrants and non-migrants in southeastern Ghana: a case study of two selected villages in relation to Koforidua town.

Migration is examined from the point of departure and destination in Koforidua, Ghana. Several aspects of migration are of interest: the significance of individual factors (age, marital status, education, and skills) and contextual variables, such as distance traveled, in determining the likelihood of migration; the operationalization of decision making to move from the home village and to select Koforidua as a destination, and the reasons nonmigrants do not migrate. A sample of 147 migrants and nonmigrants from 2 villages were selected for the survey. Logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors important for migration to occur. A subjective approach was also employed to consider factors influencing migration behavior; i.e., social ties and information networks or sociopsychological factors were important for staying, while employment opportunities were important for out-migration. The theoretical basis emphasized the examination of individual factors of migrants and nonmigrants, of subjective reasons for moving or not moving, and a 2-stage decision making process. The a priori model uses variables grouped into the following categories: demographic, socioeconomic, and road distance. Migration interval is defined as 6 months or less of residence at the destination. The population was limited to those 15-54 years of age. Household was individuals or groups of kin or nonkin residing together. The model correctly predicted 83.7% of the choices of moving or not. The findings were consistent with prior findings. Ages 35-44 had a negative and significant effect on the log odds of migration. The likelihood of migration was significantly, positively related to being unmarried. Having a secondary education was a better predictor of migrating than possessing a primary education. Contrary findings were that skills were negatively associated with the probability of migration, perhaps due to the availability of local industries. Distance was negative and insignificant. Subjective results revealed that economic ties to the village, as in land ownership or satisfaction with work were reasons for staying, but family and kinship ties were the most important. Restrictive employment opportunities were a reason to leave. Site selection had economic and noneconomic reasons, and social ties accounted for 33% of responses.

Child care in Chiang Mai: determinants and health consequences for preschool aged children.

The northern city of Chiang Mai, Thailand, and nearby rural areas have experienced a rapid decline in fertility to below replacement levels; other significant demographic trends have been in-migration, changes in married couples' post-nuptial residence, and an increase in maternal employment. As more mothers work outside of the home, formal day care is increasingly utilized. Studying 526 urban and 223 rural mothers aged 15-49, this report investigates the determinants of child care arrangements and the consequences for child health. Results indicate that nonworking mothers tend to care for their own children. In Chiang Mai, the child's age, the mother's work status, the mother's occupation, and maternal education affect care arrangements. In rural areas, care is affected by the child's age and maternal earnings. No evidence suggests that child health suffers when children are cared for in formal group settings. Further, a much higher degree of formal child care was found in this province compared to previous findings from Bangkok. Potentially linked to the regional fertility decline, a greater number of formal care providers are available in Chiang Mai, with mothers taking advantage of their services. To ease daily parental burdens, the authors recommend encouraging employers to provide day care for employees and expanding the public school system to include pre-kindergarten education.

Maternal mortality in Assiut.

This study of the determinants of maternal mortality among 8656 women from Assiut City and the surrounding villages of Mankabad, Mosha, and El-Zawia in Egypt revealed that residence was the major predictor, with risks higher in Mosha and El-Zawia, followed by parity and education. Illiterate women had 3.4 times greater risk of mortality than women with some education, after controlling for residence and parity. Mortality for illiterate women was 430/100,000 compared with 119/100,000 for women with primary schooling. Previous pregnancy complications were also significant, even though this information is not well recorded. The use of prenatal care did not significantly influence risk. Hospital deliveries showed a higher, but insignificant, risk than home deliveries. The aim was to measure the maternal mortality ratio and risks of dying, to analyze causes of death, and to determine the effect of socioeconomic factors and other confounding factors on mortality risk using multivariate methods. Data collection occurred during the entire year 1987 from sources such as prenatal facilities, clinic midwives, private doctors, daya's and women delivering alone. 2769 of the women received some prenatal care. Civil registries of live births were also used and are estimated to cover 90% of all live births. Analyses conducted involved univariate, bivariate, and multiple logistic regression. The risk of death was determined to be 335/100,000 pregnant women or a maternal mortality ratio of 368/100,000 live births. Direct obstetric causes accounted for 84% of maternal deaths (24 out of 29 deaths). Other causes were hemorrhage (24.1% postpartum and 13.8% preterm), eclampsia (24.1%), ruptured uterus (13.8%) sepsis (6.9%), and indirect obstetric causes (17%). Risks were higher among women from Mosha and El-Zawia than Assiut and Mankabad, which also had more private clinics. Women with previous birth were at high risk (55/100,000), as were women with 5 or more previous births (707/100,000), compared to women with 1-4 previous births (103/100,000). The risk of mortality was significantly increased for women with previous complications during pregnancy (P=.003) and having 2 or more previous perinatal deaths (P=.053). In the logistic model, adding age, socioeconomic status, employment, previous complications, and perinatal deaths did not significantly add to the model.

The economic and social impacts of girls' primary education in developing countries.

Policy in many countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America has aimed to improve and extend public access to education. Countries have been moderately successful in achieving this goal. Over the period 1965-85, primary school enrollment in developing countries increased from 298 million to 482 million. School-age population, however, increased from 372 million to 527 million over the same period. 145 million school-age children did not have access to primary education in 1985. Accordingly, greater strides must be made in expanding access to education in developing countries. Female students are especially underrepresented in schools. This paper reviews evidence from countries throughout the world attesting to the positive economic and social impacts of girls' primary education in developing countries. Education has direct and indirect positive effects on the economic and social well-being of women, families, communities, and countries. Overall impact originates from the interplay of social and economic outcomes, with the latter conditioned by prevailing economic, social, and cultural environments. Education brings new skills and attitudes to women which lead to higher levels of female labor force participation, increased access to training and credit, and greater production of nonmarketed goods. Women develop greater decision making power, literacy and cognitive skills, higher potential to improve health care within the family, a desire for fewer children, and an interest in educating them. While much remains to be learned about the various effects of female education, studies do suggest that age, type of economic policy, resource distribution, gender discrimination, social and cultural norms, and socioeconomic background affect the manner and degree to which women use education-acquired skills.

Female access to basic education: trends, policies and strategies.

The database on gender access in 64 USAID-assisted countries is described for the following variables: enrollment in formal education, education attainment and illiteracy, education expenditures, education resources, and socioeconomic and demographic indicators. Analysis of quantitative data is conducted for trends in the 64 countries. Analysis of qualitative data is performed for Mali, Yemen, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia for the following: country background, history of the educational system, current participation and opportunities for women, disparity between male and female access to education, quality of the data, explanations for the disparity, and policies to increase women's access to education. The regional distribution of the countries was the following: 16 East African, 17 West African, 4 North African, 4 Southeast Asian, 5 South Asian, 6 Southwest Asian, 11 Latin American, and 1 Oceania. The objective of constructing a data base was to provide accessible data for analysis of gender-access information for comparisons of access and disparity. Some preliminary conclusions are that wide disparities existed in 1975 between countries and within regions. Primary education attendance was several times higher than secondary education attendance and 8 times higher than higher education attendance. Gender differences were greater in primary education compared to secondary education, and greater in secondary education compared to higher education, except in Latin America and the Caribbean. There is a greater likelihood that men will outnumber women as educational level increases. The gender differences are greatest in higher education. Between 1975 and 1983/84 higher education and secondary education expanded more than primary education; female enrollment increased by 49% in primary education (37% for men) and 71% in secondary education (48% for men). The increases did not compensate for the disparities. Morocco, Nepal, and Guatemala increased access, while Senegal increased disparity. Countries with high access spend more of their gross national product on education than low access countries with low access and disparity have lower infant mortality.

Women in Portugal.

Prior to 1974, women in Portugal were restricted by the Penal Code and had little organizational power. Women's groups were formed within the Catholic Church to teach women about cooking, child care, and home economics. There was no contact with international women's groups. The press only reported events such as bra burning. 80% of all illiterates in Portugal are women. The conditions of Portuguese women are described after the revolution of April 25, 1974. Present roles are discussed for work, health, education, religion, trade unions and political parties, and women's organizations. The Women's Liberation Movement (WLM) appeared in May 1974 among a heterogenous group of women in Lisbon who were concerned about the oppression of women. WLM made feminist issues public amid ridicule and promoted the declaration of equal rights for women in the 1976 Republic Constitution and in the Family Code. Wage discrimination became illegal in 1979. Women represent 32.8% of the labor force. Unemployment is particularly high among women and is increasing. Women's wages and levels of skill are the lowest. The Christian Democratic government is actively engaged in a campaign to keep women at home and has formed the special Ministry of Family Affairs, which encourages large families and women's home activity in order to save jobs for men. There is a crisis in education: large class sizes and limited number of schools. Child care for the working mother is expensive when available and rarely available. An obstacle to women's rights has been the role of the Catholic Church, which fought equal rights legislation, condemned the Family Code and divorce laws, forbade the practice of contraception, and supported the movement against abortion. Only 1 member of government is a women, and she is considered a token. Trade unions have a women's section, but little attention is given to the problems of women. Women's groups within larger organizations have little autonomy. Those with autonomy are restricted and organized around specific causes, such as abortion. The liberation of women is evolving slowly.

More French early abortion patients select medical abortion than surgery, but dissatisfaction is greater.

Researchers analyzed data on 488 women who had attended 6 abortion centers in France in 1990 to examine choice of abortion types and satisfaction levels with those types. Most women (64%) planned to terminate their pregnancy using RU-486 and a prostaglandin analogue, but due to contraindications only 59% of all women actually underwent this type of medical abortion. The remaining women had vacuum aspiration under either local anesthesia (27%) or general anesthesia (9%). Women who chose RU-486 were more likely to be no older than 30 years than those using vacuum aspiration under local anesthesia (59% vs. 41%). They also tended to have at least some college education (41% vs. 19% for vacuum aspiration under general anesthesia and 20% for women who did not have a preferred choice). Women who wanted to use RU-486 were more likely to be professionals, while those who wanted a vacuum aspiration under general anesthesia or had no preference were more likely to be blue collar workers. 93% of women who selected a medical abortion and 95% of those who chose local anesthesia were of European descent. The leading reasons for choosing any method were that it seemed less traumatic (62%), safer (29%), less dangerous for future pregnancies (23%), and less likely to fail (16%). The most significant reasons for choosing RU-486 were its newness, its efficacy, its reputation for being less invasive, and verification of expulsion. Women who underwent medical abortion were more likely to be dissatisfied with the procedure than the other women (12% vs. 5% for local anesthesia and 0% for general anesthesia). further, they were more likely to see or ask to see the conceptus, need rest and sleep, and take analgesics. These findings indicated that the women choosing RU-486 may have misperceived it to be "magic" and were disappointed that it did not work as expected.

Adolescent drug users more likely to become pregnant, elect abortion.

Pregnancy and drug use histories, as well as other personal and family characteristics, were reviewed in 491 White women born in 1963 and 1964 who had experienced sexual intercourse before age 20. The study was conducted to explore the relationship between drug use and the risk of becoming pregnant. 29% of respondents became pregnant before turning 20 years old; mean age at conception was 17 years. Drug use significantly increased the risk of premarital pregnancy, with users of hard drugs having a 4-fold greater risk. Further, pregnancy risk increased with earlier initiation of substance use. 15% of adolescents who had never used drugs became pregnant, 25% of those using licit substances and marijuana became pregnant, and 38% of those using hard drugs became pregnant. This 4-fold risk of pregnancy is second only to the 7-fold risk from not using contraception. Contraceptive use, higher educational expectations, higher parental education, and higher academic ability each significantly lowered the probability of premarital pregnancy. Once pregnant, users of illegal drugs other than marijuana were five times more likely to choose abortion. 48%, however, opted to carry pregnancies to term. Women's educational expectations and parents' educational level were also statistically significant predictors of the decision to have an abortion. While substance use was related to increased sexual experimentation, only illicit drug use other than marijuana significantly predicted pregnancy and abortion. Results suggest that users of hard drugs are either more sexually active than nonusers, or are less likely to use contraception. No linear association was found, however, between drug use and failure to contracept. Users of illicit drugs are most likely having sex more often than nonusers. Programs designed to lower adolescent pregnancy should therefore include a substance use component, while drug prevention programs should educate about contraceptives.

A note on the provisional results of India's 1991 census.

Provisional 1991 census results are reported for total population, the decennial increase, population density, the sex ratio, and the literacy rate for India. Census figures have been collected over a 120-year period. The last census was conducted during March 1-5, 1991. 1.7 million enumerators were used to obtain the provisional total population figures of 843,930,861. 437,597,929 were males and 406,332,932 were females. The increase over 1981 was 160,601,764, with a growth of 23.50%. Population density was 267 persons/sq. km or 692 persons/sq. mile. The sex ratio was 929 females/1000 males. Literacy was 52.11%; male literacy was 63.86% and female literacy was 39.42% for the population older than 6 years. India is now the second largest population in the world, following China, and has 16% of the world's estimated 5.4 billion population. Every 1 out of 6 people is Indian. India's land mass constitutes 2.42% of the world's total land area. The magnitude of the population pressure is clearly demonstrated by the ratio of land mass to population figures. India adds the equivalent of the Australian population to its population every year. The decennial growth was slightly lower during 1971-81 (24.66%); decennial growth rates are provided for the last 9 decades. Density increased by 51 persons/sq. km during the past decade; this represents a steady increase over the decades. During the last decade the sex ratio declined from 934 females/1000 males in 1981, which reflects gradual declines from 1901. Literacy improved compared to the 1981 figure of 43.56%; however, the number of illiterates is still large at 324 million. Literacy rates are given for the decades since 1951.

Family background and education in Ghana: a look at a selected group of male and female university entrants.

Researchers have found relationships between family background and the educational achievement of students. This relationship has most consistently held in developed countries. African families, however, tend to be larger and more extended than families in Western countries. Children are also treated differently according to gender in developing countries. This paper adjusts for the more extended notion of family in Africa, and considers the effect of familial educational background and socioeconomic status on students' educational achievement. Potential gender effects are also explored. 533 first-year students admitted directly from boarding school into Ghana's 3 universities were considered in the study. Results confirm that access to higher education is unevenly distributed within the broader population and highly tied to family status. Students' families were almost twice a literate as adults in the broader Ghanaian population, only 15% of parents were agriculturists compared to 41% in the general population, and more than twice as many student families lived in urban areas. Adjusting for the extended family, both male and female familial education increased by approximately 40%. Further, females consistently came from higher status families. These results support the hypothesis that a similarly strong relationship between family background and educational achievement may exist in both developing and developed countries. Failure to accommodate for non-Western family structure in developing countries, however, compromises the strength of the relationship as measured in those countries.

Socioeconomic determinants of child survival in Ghana: evidence from living standards measurement survey, 1987-88.

Ghana has high levels of infant and child mortality despite reductions achieved in the 1960s and 1970s. This paper presents study results on socioeconomic differentials for neonatal postneonatal, and child mortality in Ghana over the period 1976-87. Life tables, logistic regression, and a proportional hazard model were used to analyze the survey data. No conclusions on neonatal mortality could be drawn from the analyses. Female schooling in the community, ratio of savings to expenditures, and degree of subsistence in food expenditure profile, however, are significant correlates of postneonatal mortality. Specifically, mother's schooling is negatively associated with postneonatal mortality over the period 1976-79; returns to education declined over 1980-83 and 1984-87. A significant association also exists between female schooling in the community and child mortality risk between ages 15-38 months. Finally, urban residence and classification in the second expenditure quartile are associated with excess risk of child mortality.

Women's status and fertility in Egypt and Bangladesh.

Data from the 1976 Bangladesh Fertility Survey on 5128 women and the 1988 Egyptian Demographic and Health Survey on 7774 currently married women were used to comparatively analyze the effects of women's economic and gender status on the number of children ever born. Independent variables were educational attainment, employment status after marriage, Muslim religious affiliation, and son preference. Introductory materials were provided on definitions, theories of the relationship between women's status and fertility, and demographic characteristics. The hypotheses were that higher economic status is related to fewer children; that non-Muslim status and weak son preference is related to fewer children; that hypothesis 1 will be weaker in Egypt and Bangladesh for Muslims than for non-Muslims, for women with strong son preferences than for women with weak preferences; and that economic development affects the strength of the relationships (i.e., in Egypt the relationship will be stronger for hypothesis 1 and hypothesis 2). Control variables were women's age at interview, marriage age, and women's residence. The findings in the multivariate analysis and analysis of covariance confirmed that both economic status and gender status covary inversely with the number of children ever born (CEB) to women in both Egypt and Bangladesh. Employment of women reduced the fertility of Muslim women less than non-Muslims. Muslim religion or lower status was associated with higher fertility regardless of economic status or son preference. In Egypt, 60% of the variance in CEB was explained by the predictor variables: wife's age (beta = .679), marriage age (beta = -.378), educational attainment (beta = -.098, p < .001), and urban-rural residence (beta = .126). Gainful employment was insignificant, though there was a high correlation with education (r = .433). In Bangladesh the results were similar but employment replaced education and was significant at p < .05 and residence was not statistically significant. For hypothesis 2, there was statistical significance even though the beta weights were small for son preference (.019) and religion (-.024) in Egypt; i.e., Muslim women and women with a greater son preference had a higher number of CEB. The same was true for Bangladesh. For hypothesis 3, employment by religion was significant (F = 18.97, p < .001) for both countries. Education had a stronger effect on fertility in Egypt.

Science, population and development: an exploration of interconnectivities and action possibilities in India.

This is a collection of essays by various authors on the relationships among population growth, sustainable development, technology, and science in India. Separate sections cover health issues, including population policy and fertility control; the environment and resources, including natural resources and manufactured products; such infrastructure issues as housing and urbanization; social factors, including literacy and women in development; and policy issues. (ANNOTATION)

The girl child and the family.

The appalling conditions of the Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and Sikh female children in India are emphasized. There is systematic neglect and exploitation of girls from birth through death. Dowries are still expected at the time of marriage and for years to come, regardless of the illegality. Within marriage, there is cruelty and insult, and even bride killing, known as dowry death. Parents can be accomplices in permitting the injury to begin or continue with impunity. Patience and tolerance is expected of daughters; the husband is the commanding presence. Spinsterhood is shameful. Suicide is a viable option for widowhood. Over the 40 years of freedom from British rule, antiquated norms and superstitions persist. Fundamentalism in increasing. A daughter is pitied at birth and a mother is blamed. Mothers-in-law are notorious for the blaming. These beliefs occur in spite of scientific evidence that it is the male who carries the chromosome in the sperm for sex determination. A modern practice helps to perpetuate female infanticide: amniocentesis and abortion. When food shortages occur, the pecking order favors males over pregnant women and children. Illiteracy is high among girls, who are kept home and given household chores. Better education is given to males even in middle class homes. Peer pressure and societal attitudes maintain the subservience of females. Orphanages are filled with unwanted female babies. The rape of a girl is considered shameful for life, while the rape of a boy is disregarded as unfortunate and forgotten. Expectations are that boys will be decision makers and girls can cope with domestic matters. The brainwashing to inferiority continues until the son marries and is then perpetuated.

Can mothers safely prepare labon-gur salt-sugar solution after demonstration in a diarrhoeal hospital?

The Child Health Programme at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) analyzed data on 150 mothers who had received health messages on diarrhea prevention between mid June-mid July 1989 and who lived either in the slums or periurban areas of Dhaka to determine whether they understood health messages on the home-based salt-sugar solution (labon-gur SSS) and could adequately measure its contents. It also wanted to know whether their educational level or prior knowledge affected their ability to adequately measure its contents. They attended demonstration sessions at ICDDR,B's hospital. The 150 mothers demonstrated their ability to prepare labon and gur using the finger pinch and fist method and 100 mothers measured about 500 ml of tubewell water in a plastic glass similar to the ones in most poor homes to prepare labon-gur SSS. 98.7% of the samples of gur were in the safe and effective range. Only 4% and 1.3% were beyond the upper safety limit for salt (3 gm) and glucose (31 gm), respectively. Neither prior use of labon-gur SSS nor educational background influenced their ability to prepare the solution. 80% already knew about labon-gur SSS and 56% had already made it at home. Most women 1st learned about labon-gur SSS from community health workers (50%) or from a combination of knowledge sources (community health workers, mass media, or hospitals/physicians/relations) (28.4%). These results showed that demonstration of home-based SSS in a hospital is an effective means of health education. They also demonstrated that health works should become more involved in promoting health awareness.

The determinants of the duration of breast-feeding in West Africa: a multilevel analysis.

A researchers analyzed World Fertility Survey data from Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Senegal using multilevel analytic techniques to examine determinants of breast feeding duration and the association between socioeconomic status and breast feeding duration. Educated mother, urban residence, worked outside the home or away from the family farm, and husband in nonmanual occupation defined high socioeconomic status. Women of high socioeconomic status tended to breast feed for shorter duration than did those of low socioeconomic status. Yet modernization resulted in shorter duration of breast feeding among all women regardless of socioeconomic class. The ethnicity level of modernization still had a significant negative effect on duration of breast feeding even when the researcher controlled for kinship system, Islamic society, extended family structure, and female economic independence. Polygyny level had a negative effect on breast feeding duration. This may have been due to pressures on women to bear children. On the other hand, at the individual level, women in polygynous marriages were more likely to breast feed for longer periods than those in monogamous marriages. Women living in their mothers' households tended to breast feed for a long duration. Women who were members of patrilineal societies breast fed longer than those who were from matrilineal/bilateral societies. There were basically no significant differences between the 15-29 and 30-49 age groups. These results demonstrated the weakness in normative controls over birth spacing that comes with modernization. Extended family and kinship systems still did have some positive effect on breast feeding duration, however. Furthermore, the results indicated that modernization does bring with it major demographic and health problems despite other benefits.

Industrial subcontracting: the effects of the putting out system on poor working women in India.

In the discussion of the effects of the industrial subcontracting on poor working women in India, attention is given to the organization of the production process and the integration of women in the garment, food processing, the textile industries; and women's consciousness and organization ability. Information was obtained from the case studies by Desai and Gopalan on the food processing industry in Bombay, by Bhatty on the beedi making industry, by Baud on the South Indian textile industry, and by Rao and Husain on the Delhi clothing industry. There are a variety of different home-based and industrial located work situations. Agents use different forms of production units and work on a commission basis. Raw materials and orders vary by size and payment. costs are minimized by subcontracting. Investment in small scale shops or homes is mainly in electrical machinery and domestic tools or manual machines. Organization of work also varies, i.e., factories use assembly line methods with semipermanent wages for works. Workshops use short-term wage workers. Home production uses unpaid family labor of children and women. Factories pay monthly, workshops by week or day according to a piece system, and home to the household head by the piece. Marketing is done by agents or merchants for workshops and home production, while factory products are marketed by the producer. Women workers have similar educational levels, and younger women tend to be recruited for factory work except for the textile trade where women are excluded by the unions. Marital status differences are apparent between factory workers and workshop or home production units. Women are usually Hindu except for the Muslim beedi industry workers. There is some evidence that women home workers are around the poverty line. The seclusion ethic and poverty status explain the number of women home workers. Recruitment for factories is done by employers through informal channels and workshop and home production through agents. Wage scales are lowest for home work. Women are >50% of home workers but <50% for workshops and factories. Women's contribution to income is important; the autonomy of working women was less clear except in the textile industry. Women's cooperatives offer the only hope for representation.

A hazard logit model analysis of covariates of childhood mortality in Matlab, Bangladesh.

Multivariate analysis was conducted in Matlab, a rural area of Bangladesh, to determine the absolute and relative significance of selected variables in influencing childhood mortality. Variables were grouped under the broad headings of socioeconomic, hygiene-environmental, demographic, and health program factors. Household economic status, mother's education, children's sex, health intervention programs, mother's age, and live birth order of children had statistically significant impacts on child survival when controlling for the effect of age. The sex of children, health programs, mother's age, and birth order were dependent upon the age of the children, while mother's education was dependent upon the sex of children. Having identified certain covariates of childhood mortality, efforts must now be made to identify and change the proximate determinants which negatively affect child survival.

India's family planning challenge: from rhetoric to action.

India's problem of continuing rapid population growth can be dealt with through improvement in family planning (FP) programs. This report examines the achievements and constraints or shortcomings of the population program. Appropriate policy choices recommended by experts are identified as well as the constraints to making critical, but appropriate changes in the FP program. Development achievements have been limited by the scope of rapid urban population growth, unemployment, illiteracy, and poverty. Topics of discussion include 1) the consequences of population growth; 2) the evolution of the population policy and program; 3) the current fertility profile; 4) cultural influences; 5) the strengths and weaknesses of political leadership, population policy, organization and management, public sector FP services, access to safe abortion services, private sector FP services, and public education about FP; 6) critical challenges for the 1990s; and 7) conclusion. India's policy has been focused on a single contraceptive method, the IUD and then sterilization. The program was low key and without political visibility. There is great variability by region, i.e., the highest fertility is in Bihar, Madhya, Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh states. FP practice also varies by state. There is considerable unmet need. The most significant obstacles to fertility reduction are the son preference and the low value of female children and low status of women. There is gender discrimination and unequal access to education; the social norm is for early marriage. Infant mortality is high at 91/1000 live births. There is inconsistent political support and lack of continuity in bureaucratic leadership. Recent policy shifts now emphasize quality of services, use of reversible methods, and targeting high fertility districts. The problem is in implementation of policy, unrealistic demographic goals, and failure of coordination with other interventions. Management issues are program inflexibility, domination in meeting sterilization targets, the confusion between incentives and marketing FP, and limited method availability due to the medical profession's mind-set, and lags in introduction of new technology. Public services lack sufficient outreach, are of poor quality, and staff are inadequately trained. FP education suffers from funding gaps and lack of communications expertise. Areas of consensus are identified.

Cohort succession and the future of the oldest old.

"In this chapter I will illustrate the usefulness of a cohort perspective by examining likely changes in the composition of the [U.S.] older population with respect to two important social characteristics: educational attainment and number of surviving children." (EXCERPT)

Modernization and the fertility transition, Egypt, 1975.

The longterm demographic trends in Egypt consistent with the demographic transition model are assessed in terms of the current fertility level and pattern, the extent of deliberate fertility regulation, the urban-rural fertility differential, and differentials by socioeconomic status. The study draws from Easterlin's model of social and economic determinants of marital fertility. The data used in this study come from retrospective pregnancy histories of 12,169 currently married women interviewed in the National Fertility Survey (NFS) conducted in Egypt during 1974-75. A 2-stage probability sampling design was used and the number of selected primary sampling units was 92 wards and the capital of Markaz in the urban stratum, and 102 villages in the rural stratum. The NFS showed significant regional differences in lifetime as well as in current fertility: at age group 25-29, more clearly age group 30-34, and marriage duration of 10-14 years. Urban women tend to curtail their fertility at these age groups relative to rural women. Urban areas in lower Egypt had higher fertility levels, while rural areas of upper Egypt had a relatively depressed level of fertility. The mean parities of women aged 40-44 years and less markedly of women aged 45-49 years increased slightly from region 5 to region 19 indicating a positive relation between lifetime fertility and the level of modernization of the region. Women aged 50 and over in 1975 had moderately higher level of parity of these women in Cairo and Alexandria was possibly attributable to use of contraceptives. The decline in fertility between 1960 and 1975 was masked by the rise in natural fertility among young women and the shift in marital duration toward older ages. Modern fertility behavior is observed only in modernized urban regions and among marriage cohorts of 1960-61, the debut of the National Family Planning Programme.

Occupational mobility of heads of households migrating to Medina.

"The aim of this study is to determine the effect of internal and external migration on the occupational mobility of the heads of households migrating to Medina [Saudi Arabia]....[It] is based on a survey of families in Medina which was conducted by the author in 1986/1987." The results show that "the majority of the migrants were able to achieve positive vocational mobility as a result of their migration. However, there are some distinctions in the extent of this positiveness between Saudi Arabian and non-Saudi Arabian migrants, as well as between urban and rural migrants....The main factors affecting migration to Medina are difference in income, as well as in the educational level at origin and at destination." (EXCERPT)

Fertility decline in Nigeria: the case of Ekpoma Region, Bendel State.

Data concerning 624 randomly selected mothers in Ekpoma Region, Nigeria, are used to analyze socioeconomic and cultural determinants of fertility. Factors considered include education, occupation, income, religion, age at first marriage, breast-feeding, and contraceptive practice. The author concludes that the conditions for fertility decline are now in place and that this decline could be accelerated by discouraging early marriage, increasing female education, and promoting contraception. (ANNOTATION)

[A hazard analysis of birth timing in Japan since the 1960s].

"This paper carried out a multivariate hazard analysis of the first, second and third birth timings by applying [a] log-logistic model. The results are as follows: (1) When wives are employed, the first, second and third birth hazards are all smaller than others....(2) Coresiding with couple's parents is likely to raise the first, second and third birth hazards irrespective of wife's employment status; (3) Wives with tertiary level education are accompanied by a smaller first birth hazard compared with others, while wife's educational attainment does not show any effect on the second and third birth hazards; (4) White-collar husbands are associated with a smaller first birth hazard when their wife is employed; (5) Even after controlling for several background variables, the first, second and third birth timings were accelerated in the cohorts of the late 1960s. This result suggests that the birth timing change in the late 1960s was caused by some heterogeneity which is not considered in this study." An English summary is available from the author. (EXCERPT)

Parental sex preference and its effects on fertility intention and contraceptive use in Calcutta.

This study investigated parental sex preference and its effects on fertility intention and contraceptive use in Calcutta. It also investigated the socioeconomic differentials of these effects. Data on 4536 married women of childbearing age came from a cross-sectional survey of slum and non-slum areas conducted in 1970. Desired numbers of sons and daughters in the slum area were 1.89 and 1.30, respectively, and in the non-slum area, 1.63 and 1.17, respectively. 35% of slum women and 30% of non-slum women wanted to have more children, and 22% of slum women and 45% of non-slum women were reported to use contraceptives. The authors estimate that in the absence of parental sex preference, 11% fewer slum women and 12% fewer non-slum women would desire more children. On the other hand, 20% more slum women and 8% more non-slum women would use contraceptives in absence of parental sex preference. (author's)

Sudan in the light of its national censuses, with special reference to the 1983 census.

"The aim of this paper is to examine Sudan's development conditions, using its national censuses as indicators of the status of the country, with special reference to the 1983 census, the last census in Sudan." The importance of taking migration into account when examining the prospects for development is stressed. The author also describes available demographic data sources for the Sudan, including the censuses of 1955-1956 and 1973. Sections are included on population size and growth, sex and age distribution, spatial distribution, population density, mortality, migration, illiteracy, and the labor force. (EXCERPT)

Fertility regulation behaviour in Pakistan: relevance of fertility control with demand for, supply of children and costs of fertility regulations.

Changes in Pakistan's family planning policies are assessed. The authors find that the cost of regulating fertility is significant for current use of contraception, but not for intent to use it. They recommend that families who don't know how many children they want be targeted by the new decentralized approach to family planning. The cost-effectiveness of policies to promote breast-feeding, women's education, and reduced infant and child mortality is noted. (SUMMARY IN HIN) (ANNOTATION)

Progression to second and third births in China: patterns and covariates in six provinces.

"Data on ever-married women of reproductive age from six Chinese provinces were obtained from the 1987 In-Depth Fertility Survey, Phase II, to examine whether government population policies related to child mortality, rural residence, ethnic group and gender of the firstborn child, or individual characteristics such as educational level and living standard, are more important in determining which women have more than one child....While all covariates proved important, the most significant covariate for predicting a second birth, particularly in areas where few women have more than one child, was the death of the previous child. Having a daughter the first time also had a strong positive effect on the likelihood of having a second birth in some areas. While living standard had a significant effect on the likelihood of having a second birth in some areas, the findings do not support conjecture that rural families with the economic means to pay the penalties are more likely to have a second child. The results for third births were similar to those for second births." This is a revised version of a paper originally presented at the 1991 Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America. (EXCERPT)

Economic factors affecting human fertility in the developing areas of southern Africa.

Economic factors affecting family size in the traditional rural sector of South Africa are analyzed using data from a survey of some 200 KwaZulu households. "Regression analysis was used to estimate the demand function [for children] and principal components analysis confirmed the underlying theoretical linkages. Results show that wife's education (expected income or opportunity cost), child help (benefits) and desired family size were important explanatory variables. Three components extracted represented the substitution effect, the income effect and child investment theory. Results show that investment in education, taken as a proxy for expected earnings, is a strong policy option for reducing family size." (EXCERPT)

Effect of female education on the proximate determinants of fertility in Bangladesh.

"This paper investigates the effect of female education on fertility in Bangladesh...through three proximate determinants of fertility: marriage, postpartum non-susceptibility to conception, and contraception....The analysis found that a small amount of education tends to increase fertility....The effect of education on proximate determinants shows that it is positive for postpartum non-susceptibility to conception, [while] in contrast it is negative for marriage and contraception. Therefore, [the] contribution of the duration of postpartum non-susceptibility is stronger for less educated women, while marriage and contraception have important effects when education is high at the individual level." (EXCERPT)

The emergence of a positive relation between education and third birth rates in Norway with supportive evidence from the United States.

The author examines the effect of women's education on third-birth rates in Norway and compares the findings with a survey conducted in the United States. "Norwegian women who had a second birth during the late 1970s and had received more than 12 years of schooling gave birth to a third child more frequently than women who had only received the minimum compulsory education. Similar results were obtained for American women who had a second birth during the 1970s. Attempts to explain this positive effect of education in terms of economic status, or a differential impact on commitment to work by the mothers, have failed. It also seems that trends and variations in selection to parity 2 play a minor role." (EXCERPT)

Perimarital counselling on family planning.

Results from a survey on contraceptive acceptance conducted among 269 adolescent couples married in Maharashtra, India, during 1989-1990 are discussed. Data are included on marriage age, educational status, knowledge of family planning, and family size attitudes. Recommendations are made for targeting adolescent couples with family planning counseling and education efforts. (SUMMARY IN HIN) (ANNOTATION)

Fertility transition in Asia: the statistical evidence.

Data concerning the fertility transition in Asia are analyzed and compared by region. Consideration is given to total fertility rates, 1960-1990; proportion of women ever married by age, 1960-1990; and socioeconomic determinants, including maternal educational status, paternal occupation, and urban or rural residence. (ANNOTATION)

Determinants of fertility: results from a 1989 rural household survey in China.

"The relationship between family planning, socioeconomic conditions, and fertility was investigated in six rural villages of China. Data from a 1989 random household survey were used to test the hypothesis relating fertility (number of children born) to family planning policy (policy impact and free contraceptive provision) and socioeconomic conditions (education and income). The fertility behavior of two cohorts (the first refers to those married before 1969 and the second those between 1978 and 1980) was compared to examine the impact of strict family planning policy on fertility. The average number of children born was significantly fewer in the second cohort than the first cohort (1.6 versus 4.2) during the ten year span after marriage. The regression results indicate that family planning policy measures and female education have both direct and indirect (through influence on age at first marriage and contraceptive use) significant impact on fertility." (EXCERPT)

[Migration and its social consequences in relation to the character of rural settlements]

The consequences of rural-urban migration in Slovakia for the population of rural areas is analyzed, particularly with regard to socioeconomic, educational, and administrative impacts. Data are primarily from the 1980 census of Czechoslovakia. (SUMMARY IN ENG AND GER AND RUS) (ANNOTATION)

A demographic look at tomorrow.

The author analyzes demographic trends in the United States since 1980, then makes projections to the year 2010. The focus is on minorities, spatial distribution, fertility, and social class; and the implications for education, the labor force, and policy. (ANNOTATION)

How do immigrants fare in the U.S. labor market?

Data from the U.S. Current Population Survey for November 1989 are used to analyze factors affecting the labor market experiences of migrants to the United States. "This survey showed...that the unemployment rate for immigrants was somewhat higher than the rate for native-born workers, and that the weekly earnings of immigrants who worked full time were significantly lower than those of natives. The survey also pointed to differences in the level of schooling as a major reason for these disparities....Other factors affecting the labor market status of immigrants include the length of time they had lived in the United States and their fluency in English." (EXCERPT)

A generation of change: a profile of America's older population.

The author profiles the older generation in the United States, including their residential and migration patterns, length of life and health conditions, living arrangements and family status, educational level, work and retirement status, income and wealth, and housing conditions. The period covered is from 1950 to 1985. Data are from the 1980 U.S. census as well as other official sources. (ANNOTATION)

Migration from the northeast to the southeast in Brazil: do migrants succeed?

"In this paper 1980 [Brazilian] Census microdata are used to evaluate the experiences of males who moved from the Northeast to the Southeast in the post- 'miracle' period. Using regression analysis, migrant earnings are compared to those of persons who remain in the Northeast, to estimate the average earnings gain from relocating. These results are then disaggregated by education, age at migration, period of residence, and particular sending and receiving location, to provide more specific information on which groups benefit most. Wide variation in gains is observed, but substantial improvements in earnings are reported in most cases." (EXCERPT)

Pakistan acts on population. Country report.

In the 1950s Pakistan had a population program, but lack of political commitment prevented curbing of population growth so that the population grew at least 3.1% annually. 1969 was the last time the government committed itself to a population program. In July 1991, the Prime Minister began a population policy which recommitted the government to slowing population growth. Indeed, the Prime Minister's party campaigned to reduce population growth. The Prime Minister elevated the post of Adviser to the Prime Minister for Population Welfare to cabinet rank. This adviser has visited all parts of the country to build support for the government's population policy. The government plans to use a multisectoral, multidimensional accelerated program to implement the policy in which all sectors promote the small family norm. The program also plans to provide family planning services through several existing services, e.g., maternal and child health services. It also includes research and surveys to provide baseline data to evaluate the program's impact. In the past political leaders believed religious groups would react negatively to any strong promotion of a population policy, but today, they recognize that the people want to use family planning and, if the religious leaders object, the people will reject them. Besides, many Islamic scholars note that it is not anti-Islamic to practice family planning. Many people believed a high illiteracy rate of 60% was an obstacle to a successful population program in the past, but recent studies show that the people know about family planning but do not have access to family planning services. Further, it reveals that 60% of married women do not want any more children or want to space their births, yet just 20% have family planning access. The new program plans to increase coverage in rural areas by 20% by mid 1992. Top program managers claim that an inefficient and sometimes corrupt system of government will not pose obstacles to reduction of population growth this time.

The life experience and status of Chinese rural women from observation of three age groups.

Interview data gathered during 2 surveys in Anhui and Shejiang Provinces in 1986 and 1987 are used to depict changes in the social status and life situation of rural women in China in 3 age groups, 18-36, 37-55, and 56 and over. For the younger women, marriage increasingly is a result of discussion with parents, not arrangement, but 3rd-party introductions are increasing. They are active in household and township enterprises and aspire to more education and economic independence. The middle-aged group experienced war and revolution and now work nonstop under the responsibility system of household production, aspiring to university education for sons and enterprise work for daughters. The older women, while supported by their sons, live a frugal existence. In general, preference for sons is still prevalent and deep-seated. At the same time, the bride price and costs of marriage are increasing and of widespread concern. Rural socioeconomic growth is required before Confucian traditions are overcome. (author's)

Abortion, childbearing, and women's well-being.

The National Longitudinal Study of Youth, 1987, is used as the basis for the examination of responses of 5295 22-30 year old women. The research objective was to find the relationship between women's well-being as measured on the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale (10 items) and abortion experiences between 1979 and 1987. The significance of this study is in being a large nationally representative sample, longitudinal, and with reliable and valid standardized measures. The context before having an abortion is provided as well as a long time after an abortion (>7 years). "Unwanted" refers to at present or at any future time. The central questions were whether women having abortions were not as well off as other women, whether the relationship between abortion and well being can be explained by other variables such as the impact of childbearing or contextual variables, and whether the relationship between abortion and well being is greater with passage of time since abortion. The evidence for postabortion emotional responses is provided which indicates that freely chosen abortion has not been found to be associated with severe psychological trauma. Women with preexisting emotional problems are at a slightly higher risk for negative emotional responses after an abortion. The alternatives for a pregnant woman, a review of unwanted pregnancy outcome evaluations, and a review of abortion and self-esteem are discussed. The results indicate that women who have had 1 abortion had higher self-esteem in general and greater feelings of worth and capability than women who did not have abortions. Recognition is given to the fact that feelings in an unwanted pregnancy experience cannot be differentiated from the effects of abortion. Contextual variables (employment, income, education, childbearing) contribute to stress; psychological distress affects all women's responses to an unwanted pregnancy regardless of outcome. Having an unwanted birth is associated with lower self-esteem, and total number of children has a negative effect on well being. Women's well being after an abortion is probably more related to childbearing than empowerment in the experience. It also may be that the preexisting low self-esteem women may use the "motherhood" mandate or wanted children to build up self-esteem, which is not fulfilled particularly when coping resources are limited. Coping resources are more related to well being.

[Development policy approaches for reducing the birth rate in rural areas of developing countries]

Fertility is declining in poor developing countries, especially in Africa, very slowly, and in some countries it was the same or higher in 1986 than in 1965. In 1990 the countries leading in annual population growth were Gabon with 4.4%, Kenya and Ivory Coast with 4.1%, followed closely by Zimbabwe, Honduras, Ghana, and Botswana. Rural-urban migration is the consequence with grave implications on the urban socioeconomic structure. The question to what extent a compulsion-free population policy brings about the reduction of fertility is examined. The policy of China with its penalties, controls, and social pressure is not a usable model for developing countries. If the health and nutritional conditions improve significantly in these countries child mortality drops and natural fertility increases for the short term, but the survival of more children reduces the desire to have a large family, and eventually leads to enduring fertility reduction perhaps over generations. Education of girls shortens their generative phase, their higher educational status accords them more say in reproductive decisions, and intellectual and social opportunities change their behavior positively toward family planning, and better education also reduces child mortality. In industrial countries employment of women has led to reduction of large family size, but in agrarian economies motherly duties are more in harmony with agricultural work. Improved drinking water supplies result in better hygiene that, in turn, reduces diseases and mortality. Family planning has a particularly large impact on the reduction of fertility if it is sufficiently integrated into economic development and maternal-child health care programs to attain the urgent task of shifting 30% of the poorest from phase 2 of the demographic transition to a higher phase.

Knowledge and use of oral rehydration therapy for childhood diarrhoea in Tumpat District.

In May-June 1988, community medicine professors oversaw interviews of 265 primary caregivers of 0-4 year old children living in 4 villages in Tumpat District in Kelantan State, Thailand, and collected secondary data from the health centers and district hospital serving these villages to identify epidemiological features of childhood diarrhea and knowledge and use of oral rehydration therapy. The annual incidence of diarrhea stood at 1.38 episodes/child. 21 children (5.3%) had diarrhea in the 2 weeks before the interview. Literate mothers were considerably more likely to use oral rehydration solution (ORS) than were illiterate mothers (38.7% vs. 22.6%; p = .002). 40% of all mothers were familiar with ORS, but only 30% had used ORS. 10% of mothers who knew about our used ORS demonstrated strong knowledge of ORS and 39% had no knowledge. ORS usage was highest in village C (55.2% vs. 32.6% for the village with the next highest usage rate) which had the lowest proportion of houses with latrines (8.7% vs. 21.9% for the village with the next lowest proportion) and the second lowest proportion of houses with safe water (3.3% vs. 3.7% and 12.3%). 94.9% of mothers said they could correctly prepare ORS, yet only 20.5% could actually do so (31% in the village with the highest maternal educational level [49.5% vs. 19.2% for the village with the lowest educational level]). Nevertheless, 82.1% of the mothers stating they knew how to prepare ORS knew that they had to throw out the unused prepared solution in less than 24 hours. The study population used 5 different ORS sachets, the most commonly used sachet being that of the Ministry of Health (250 ml). Other ORS sachets included the 200-ml sachet (Eltolit) from the Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital, an orange flavored Eltolit, and 2 sachets with instructions in English (240 ml and 250 ml). The abbreviation ml confused many of the literate women.

[Main sociocultural aspects related to breast feeding in Malinalco, Mexico]

A study of breast feeding among women in the community of Malinalco, Mexico, was intended to identify the principal sociocultural factors involved in decisions about infant feeding among a group of rural mothers. Each woman was interviewed with a standardized questionnaire with open and closed questions and received a series of home visits to provide greater depth in consideration of some topics, especially those concerning habits, beliefs, and attitudes. The 225 women had children under 5 years old. 17% were illiterate, 48.5% had 4-6 years of education, and 7.1% more than 6 years. 29% of the 206 fathers responding to the questionnaire were agricultural wage laborers and 58% were occupied in agriculture in some capacity. 78.6% of the women were housewives and the rest were vendors of fruit, vegetables, tortillas, or other foodstuffs on market days or weekends. The average income of sample families was low. About half of the homes had dirt floors; only 30% had sewage services. The information on breast feeding pertained to the youngest children, of whom 16% were under 6 months old, 29% were 7-12 months, 30% were 13-18 months, and 24% were 19 months or older. 73% of the mothers breast fed exclusively in the first 3 months, 15% breast and bottle fed, and 12% exclusively bottle fed. No significant differences were found between breast feeding levels during the first 3 months and monthly income or maternal education when it was divided into 2 levels, 1-3 or 4-6 years of primary education. 92% of the mothers believed that breast milk is the ideal food for newborns. 48% stated they had heard of remedies to increase milk production. 92% had heard of milk "going away" during breast feeding, and 30% of these had experienced the problem. Of these 62 women, 45% used home remedies, 21% medications, and 13% both home remedies and medications to renew milk production. The other 21% stated they did not solve the problem. 72% of the youngest children were born at home and 28% in clinics. There was no statistically significant relationship between place of delivery and type of infant feeding. Among women who breast fed, 2.9% weaned the infant at 3-5 months, 17.7% at 6-8 months, 42.9% at 9-11 months, and 36.5% at 1 year or later. 7.9% of all the mothers introduced other foods in addition to milk at 0-2 months, 58.2% at 3-5 months, 24.6% at 6-8 months, and 8.3% at 9 months or later.

Changes in marriage patterns and family structures since 1960 in Taiwan, ROC.

Changes in marriage patterns and family structure in Taiwan are examined since 1960 with multiple classification statistical analysis (MCA) and percentage distribution, ratio, and contingency tables. The aim is to differentiate between changes due to household composition vs. demographic transition. Data were obtained from KAP surveys in 1967, 1973, 1980, and 1986. Discussion includes the declines in mate selection by parents, the later age at 1st marriage, the increase in the divorce rate, and changes in family structure by household type, living arrangement, attitudes toward coresidence, and socioeconomic factors related to the trend in nuclear families (educational level, modernity, occupation, and income level). Significant changes have occurred. Without the influences of parental supervision of marriage choice, greater autonomy is evidenced in selection and premarital sexual activity. Marriage age has increased and there were declines in the 1st marriage rate of women >30 years and >40 years. The age specific divorce rate increased for every age group under 50 years. The number of nuclear families increased, and the willingness to live with a husband's family has declined. The proportion of old parents living with children has also decreased. Traditional arrangements are still in evidence. Occupation and income level have the strongest effects on determining household composition, which has not changed as dramatically as family structure. Family structure is interrelated to industrialization and modernization. 4 models are constructed to reflect the differences. Higher husband educational level is related to the lower likelihood of coresidence with parents for couples; wife's educational level is as important as husband's educational level. Coresidence is also less likely with higher levels of modernity for the wife, but when income and occupation are added the beta square decreases to <.01. other data not reported show that those living in non-rural areas, mainlanders, and Christians were less likely to live with parents and professional men and service workers are less likely to live with parents. Occupation is also related to the living arrangements of married brothers. The higher the income level the lower the proportion of coresidence.

Impact of the family planning program on population quality -- the case of Taiwan.

Taiwan has been highly successful in reducing fertility and increasing contraceptive use and prevalence among its population. Having achieved fertility transition, population policy and family planning (FP) practice in Taiwan have focused increasingly upon raising the quality of population. This paper considers changes in educational fertility differentials in Taiwan. A socioeconomic model is developed in which fertility attitude, actual fertility, infant and child mortality, fertility regulation, and excess fertility are used as variables to explain social fertility differentials. The models are then evaluated by analyzing data with regression analysis from a series of Taiwan KAP surveys conducted over the period 1965-86. The study follows major trends in social differential fertility from early to later stages in the FP program. Empirical results indicate that high and substantial different ideal family sizes, actual fertility, excess fertility persisted among different educational statuses in the early stage of the FP. Though contraceptive use was lower overall for every educational status, large differentials existed. Simply put, excess, undesirable fertility would have resulted among lower classes had the program not been implemented when it was. The births of many unwanted children were avoided among these classes, effectively improving the quality of the population. In the FP program's later stages, major reductions occurred in both attitudinal and actual fertility, while excess fertility declined across educational strata. Contraceptive use became universal and widespread across educational statuses. Greater educational fertility differentials in the later stages of the program, however, negatively affected population quality. The FP program positively affected population quality in Taiwan when one allows for changes in educational structure.

[Women, fertility, development: the case of Rwanda]

Rwanda's high fertility rate and very rapid population growth have a negative impact on the welfare of women. Traditionally, women in Rwanda won the respect of their in-laws by having many children, on whom they depended for social status, help in agricultural work, and support in old age. Women also played a very important role in agricultural production in addition to their daily household activities. Migration of men and young people to urban areas has left many women totally in charge of agricultural production and has further deprived them of their limited leisure time. Low income, legal obstacles, literacy, custom and other factors limit women's resulting from their inferior social and juridical status conditions their reproductive behavior despite the development of a family planning program dating to 1981. The low level of female education is an important factor; 33% of women vs. 61% of men are literate. 25% of Rwanda's budget is devoted to education, but population growth has impeded progress Illiteracy implies a lack of receptivity to new ideas, including family planning. A 1983 fertility study in Rwanda showed that marriage age increased with education, from 18.8 years for illiterate women to 19.5 for those within 3-5 years. The number of children declined with the educational attainment of the mother, as did infant mortality rates. Considering the physical labor that women carry out, their repeated pregnancies are a handicap to the promotion of their own and their family's health. The prevailing high fertility exacerbates nutritional problems; some 20% of infants weigh less that 2.5 kg at birth. Efforts have recently been made to recognize the contribution of women and to elevate their status, such as improving their access to education, raising the legal marriage to 21, and prohibiting polygamy. The National Office of Population was created in 1981 to study population problems and take action to resolve them. The national population policy adopted in 1990 seeks to increase awareness of population problems, promote use of contraception, improve health, promote participation of women in development, and improve population distribution. Its specific goals are to reduce the annual growth rate from 3.6% in 1990 to 2.0% in 2000, increase contraceptive prevalence from 12% in 1990 to 48.4% in 2000, and increase life expectancy from 49 years in 1985 to 53.5 years in 2000. New strategies have been developed to improve the status of women, and other actions that will be needed have been identified.

Marriage duration in Brazil: a proportional hazards analysis of separation and divorce for the state of Sao Paulo.

Data from the 1984 National Household Survey on marriage histories in Sao Paulo state, Brazil were analyzed with Cox's proportional hazards model to examine patterns of separation and divorce as a covariate of type of marriage, birth cohort, marriage cohort, age at marriage, age differences, education, race, residence, and population concentration. Analysis was 1st conducted considering the predictors one at a time; then all predictors were used to estimate the net effect of each variable; and finally a multivariate analysis of interactions between predictors. The results showed that type of marriage is the major predictor of marriage duration and has significant interactive effects with demographic factors such as a women's marriage age and age differences between spouses and structural variables such as population density. The important demographic predictors were women's birth cohort, women's age at marriage, and age difference between spouses. The demographic analysis was enhanced by the use of natural cubic splines techniques. A less significant covariate was woman's years of education, which interacts with woman's age at marriage. The analysis in the additive model shows that white women, born in the 1960s, with 1 year of education, marrying at age 12, with men 27 years older, in consensual union, and living in the metropolitan area of Sao Paulo, have 323.0 times greater separation risk than women of Asian origin, born in the 1930s with 3 years of education, who marry at age 23, with men 6 years older, in a religious marriage, who live in a rural region of a small town. The highest risk of separation occurs for mixed race women, born in the 1960s, with 9-11 years of education, marrying at 16, with a man 14 years older, in a consensual union, and living in an urban area of a small town. The risk was 551.4 times the risk of the aforementioned Asian woman. A conclusion is that the proportional hazard approach is suitable to this analysis with the limitation that the risk of separation may not be proportional. If this is the case, further research should be conducted.

Should thermometers be issued to birth attendants in Nepal? [letter]

Researchers analyzed data on 12 healthy sized newborns born at home in rural villages south of Kathmandu, Nepal between 1700 and 0800 hours in January-March 1989 to study postdelivery temperatures of home births. 3 illiterate traditional birth attendants (TBAs) measured body temperature with a standard mercury in glass rectal thermometer which had a mark at 35 degree Celsius. They did so within 12 hours of birth when the newborns were well wrapped. A TBA training program supervisor had earlier taught them how to measure newborn body temperature. 7 of the 12 body temperatures (58%) were <35 degrees Celsius, 4 (33%) at 35 degrees Celsius, and 1 >35 degrees Celsius. TBAs delivered the placenta and tended to the mother after laying the newborn on a cloth on the floor next to the mother. After they tended to the mother's needs, they washed and wrapped the newborn. These results indicated that hypothermia is quite common in rural Nepal and that TBAs do not practice adequate thermal practices. They showed that illiterate women can adequately measure body temperature. These findings also confirmed those of other studies which found a high incidence of hypothermia in newborns after delivery and at discharge from the Kathmandu Maternity Hospital and in the hospital's neonatal unit. Therefore Nepal should establish a training program to teach TBAs about hypothermia and how to use rectal thermometers.

Growth charts only marginally improved maternal learning from nutrition education and growth monitoring in Lesotho.

Between December 1985 and November 1986, before and after 3 monthly sessions of group nutrition counseling and individual counseling about weaning and diarrhea management at 9 primary health clinics in Lesotho, researchers compared data on 575 mothers who received a growth chart to monitor their <2-year old children's growth with data on 201 mothers of <2-year old children who did not receive a growth chart. They wanted to learn whether growth charts promoted maternal learning and whether the growth charts better served some mothers than other mothers. Growth monitoring intervention improved knowledge of diarrhea management but not weaning practices. This improvement in learning about diarrhea management was limited to new clinic attendants, mothers with less than high school education, and mothers with malnourished children, however. Yet the differences in benefits between these 2 groups were <10% and insignificant. Nutrition education interventions had significantly improved knowledge of weaning practices and diarrhea management for both groups of mothers (range of improvement 3-119.2%; p<.05). The greatest improvements occurred in correct responses to continuous feeding of solid foods during diarrhea (119.2% for mothers who did not receive charts and 85.2% for those who did) and to introduction of protein rich vegetables to children's diet (42.6% and 58.9%, respectively). Thus use of growth charts contributed only slightly to increased effectiveness of nutrition education. It appeared that the quality and specificity of educational projects and proper use of weight information during individual counseling contributed the most to improved maternal learning. Nevertheless further research is warranted to learn the circumstances, purposes, and target audience under which use of growth charts would bring the most benefits.

Ethnic differentials in the ideal and practice of child-spacing in Ghana.

Postpartum sexual abstinence along with breast feeding are the most important determinants of fertility in sub-Saharan Africa. Sexual intercourse with nursing mothers has become a widespread taboo in the interest of safeguarding child health. The practice of and attitudes toward postpartum abstinence, however, vary considerably across ethnic groups. This study employs data from the 1988 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey to examine the contemporary status of ethnic differentials in abstinence in the country. The survey captured a nationally representative sample of 4406 households including 4488 women aged 15-49. Substantial variation between ethnic groups was found to exist in the length of abstinence practice, abstinence ideals, and perceptions of the adequacy of abstinence. The duration of abstinence is not necessarily always very long, while taboo supportive of lengthy abstinence is not always favored. Only 1/3 of the sample prefer to delay sex while breast feeding; the duration of breast feeding is on average much longer than the duration of abstinence. Exposure to modernization, marriage patterns, and religious traditions are most significantly associated with ethnic differences in the distribution of abstinence. Of modernization forces, education and urbanization are most powerful. Little relationship was found between distribution of abstinence and demographic characteristics of ethnic groups.

Childbearing and use of oral contraceptives: impact of educational level. The Nordland Health Study.

In 1988-89, researchers analyzed data on 3608 40-42 year old women who attended a health screening in Tromso and lived in the northernmost county of Norway called Nordland to determine whether educational status was linked to childbearing patterns and oral contraceptive (OC) use. 26% of women with <8 years of schooling had at least 4 children while only 7% of women with >16 years of schooling had as many children. Parity decreased as level of education increased (parity=2.9 for women with <8 years of education and parity=2.1 for those >16 years of education; p<.0001). Women with >16 years of education had their 1st child on average 4 years later than those with <8 years of education (25.7 years vs. 21.1 years; p<.0001). 19% of women with >16 years of education had their 1st child after the age of 29 compared with just 2% of those with <8 years of education. There was a similar pattern for age at last birth (31.2 years for >16 years and 28.6 years for <8 years; p<.0001). Educational level did not affect mean period between births, however (2.4 years for >16 years and 2.5 years for <8 years). Only <1% of the women currently used OCs, but previous OC use was greater in women with at least 13 years of education than in those with <8 years of education (60% for 13-16 years and 58% for >16 years vs. 39% for <8 years; p<.0001). Educational level was positively associated with proportion of OC users before 1st birth (34% for >16 years vs. 5% for <8 years; p<.0001). OC use before 1st birth resulted in a mean reduction of 0.4 children (p<.0001). These findings demonstrated that women with a high level of education have relatively few children and use OCs to delay childbearing.

Women still bearing the blows in reproductive health.

Only women can experience the health threats of pregnancy and childbirth. Responsibility for the survival, growth, and development of children falls mainly on their shoulders. Sexually transmitted diseases cause more severe effects in women than men. Women are 3 times more likely to use contraceptives than men Yet female contraceptive methods are more of a threat to health an are male methods. Even though infertility occurs in both men and women, in most countries, women face its negative social and psychological effects more often than do men. Besides, almost everywhere, social and economic indicators show women to be of lower status than men. For example, female literacy rates in developing countries are 33% lower than those of male, even though leaders have known for a long time that female education improves use of health care and family planning services. Furthermore, females are at a disadvantage from birth in terms of education, nutrition, and society which places them at high risk of adverse health. Some societies even endorse method to prevent women from enjoying sexual intercourse. Premarital sex and adolescent pregnancy are increasing worldwide, which adds to women's already high burden. In Argentina, women less than 18 years of age, especially those in rural areas and little education, have higher fertility rates than those older than 18 years. They tend to be ignorant of reproductive processes, but familiar with contraceptives; yet, only 40% of sexually active adolescents had ever used them. Besides, teenage males think that concern about becoming pregnant is the female's responsibility. Indeed, women's status and reproductive health are interrelated. Ability to regulate their own fertility strengthens women's status, but if they cannot do so, they cannot go to school, be employable, or make their own decisions.

Kenya enters the fertility transition.

The fertility transition in Kenya is appraised by examining fertility trends and other studies, determining why earlier predictions were misleading, and pointing out the positive influences on fertility decline. The 1989 Kenya Demographic Health Survey provided startling results regarding the 17% decline in total fertility and the 4-fold increase in contraceptive prevalence in 12 years. Between 1984 and 1989 there was a shift to modern methods. 45% of ever married women reported ever use of contraception in 1989 compared to 30% in 1984. 90% of both husbands and wives approve of use of family planning (FP). Ideal family size decreased to 4.4 in 1989. The trend is a rising current use, shift to modern methods, decreased ideal family size, and decreased desire for additional children. The following studies' results are reported: the Chogoria Clinic study, the Kenya voluntary sterilization program, the GTZ Etono study, other small scale studies, abortion studies, the male motivation study, and the Family Planning Association of Kenya studies. Several conclusions are drawn: 1) families are beginning to recognize the great burden of large families, which contributes to a positive attitude toward FP; 2) FP has increased, particularly modern methods; 3) new FP clients avail themselves of FP supplies when accessible. The findings suggest that the trends are real. Earlier arguments were that African families are large because of demand, that African culture is pronatalist, and that FP programs are ineffective. These arguments are tested out logically. The Chicago version of the microeconomic model of fertility shows serious problems when applied to Kenya. Modernization has occurred regardless of cultural values. The Kenyan FP program may not have achieved immediate success, but social changes such as the land reclamation program, the expansion of education and infrastructure, and the cost-sharing approach of paying for education by parents have taken place. The government has created, through land holdings and mass education, better demand policies which impacted on fertility. The lesson is that modernization accomplishes change first, and cultural change follows.

Gender inequality as a determinant of fertility among Mexican migrants, Mexican-Americans, and non-Hispanics in the United States.

The purpose of this study was to explain fertility in terms of gender inequality between 2106 non-Hispanics and 137 Mexican Americans and 853 Mexican migrants selected from the 1980 Census Public Use Microdata 5% Sample A (PUMS-A). The population included married couples where the wife is under 50 years of age and both are of the same ethnic origin, which meant the sample population was concentrated in the western states (Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah). Measures included age, ability to speak English, age at 1st marriage, labor force status, total income in 1979, highest year of school completed, children ever born, state of residence, and year of immigration in 5-year groups between 1950 and 1980 and before 1050. Gender inequality was based on measures of husband-wife absolute differences, the ratio of the value of the husband to the wife's value on various variables, and ordered categories of labor force status. Methodological issues and problems are identified: women at different stages in the family life cycle; recall and high mortality may affect accuracy of children ever born data; and children ever born reflects a past measure while gender inequality is a current measure. Analysis involves multiple regression equations, simple correlations, and means and standard deviations. It was expected that gender inequality and fertility would be highest among Mexican migrants, followed by Mexican Americans, and non-Hispanics in 13 specific hypotheses. The results show that the rank order of means for gender inequality measures did not follow the expected pattern for more than 2 measures. The bivariate correlations revealed that there was some support for hypotheses which stated that fertility was positively related to individual measures of gender inequality, particularly for Mexican migrants. Multiple regression results did not support the hypothesis that inequality measures would explain the largest amount of fertility in the Mexican migrant group. Difference and ratio inequality measures provide only partial explanations of the variance in fertility; difference gender inequality measures explained less. Controlling for age increased the amount of variance explained. Gender inequality has some explanatory power, and the reasons due to validity and methodological problems are explained.

Rural-to-urban migration and its effect on food consumption and nutrition in The Gambia.

This comparative study of food consumption and nutrition in the Gambia involved the interviewing of 407 urban (Banjul area), migrant (longterm, >3 years, and short term) and rural (North Bank and 30 km from Banjul) households between September 5, 1989 and March 29, 1990. The purpose was to assess the influence of rural-urban migration on household food acquisition and consumption patterns and compare the nutritional status, and to identify the factors directly or indirectly related to food acquisition and consumption behavior. Length of residence in urban areas was considered. The literature review covers theories of urbanization and migration and studies on food consumption patterns and determinants of food consumption and nutritional status. Results are both descriptive and from multivariate analysis. Research hypotheses are 1) that energy consumption increases with rural-urban migration and may be caused by increased income, women's allocation of time, and diet composition. 2) Length of residence in urban areas is hypothesized to impact on changes in food consumption. 3) Quality of diet is expected to improve after migration. 4) Urbanization will improve the child nutritional status doe to increased energy intake, women's time allocation, access to health services, and/or women's education. Household calorie consumption was measured by total daily caloric intake. The results of the multivariate analysis using 2-stage least squares showed that in the restricted model income, household size and number of female incomes positively and significantly (p<.05) affected the total amount of calories consumed in the household. With increased income, calorie consumption increased in migrant households faster than in rural households and urban households; all groups had much the same percentage share of calories from cereals and rice. Recent migrants hand slightly lower percentage of cereals but higher intake of oils, dairy products, and fish. Types of grains consumed vary between rural and urban areas. Calorie consumption increased with length of stay, but with a declining rate. Anthropomorphic measures were similar for urban and migrant households. Wasting was more common in rural areas. Mother's education higher than primary level and water supply were important in improving child nutrition. The best educated and enterprising tend to migrate. Recent migrant households had the highest incomes, thus the highest nutritional levels.

Son preference, population policy, and government control: How do they affect women's fertility related behavior in China, 1979-1988?

A doctoral student analyzed data on 8020 women living in China (1988 Two per Thousand Fertility Survey) to determine the effect which son preference, government control, and the one child policy had on fertility behavior. Contraceptive usage after the first live birth had the highest compliance rate (47.1%), followed by avoidance of next pregnancy (34.1%). Acceptance of one child certificate had the lowest compliance rate (22.1%). Women with a type ii household registration (government food quota, urban, guaranteed formal employment and old age pension, government controlled benefits, and subject to more government control) were more apt to accept the one child certificate (88.5% vs. 12.1%) and less apt to have a subsequent pregnancy (48.2% vs. 68.5%) (p < .05). They also were more likely to use family planning (66.6% vs. 44.9%) and to have an abortion of subsequent pregnancy (89.4% vs. 19.75) (p < .05). Women's educational level had the same effects as type II household registration. The difference between type I and type II household registration was greatest for having an abortion, followed by acceptance of the one child certificate, indicating sizable government control. Women who had a daughter were consistently less apt to accept the one child policy, to use contraceptives after the first birth, and to have an abortion of the subsequent pregnancy and always more apt to have a subsequent pregnancy (p < .05). Further, living with parents reinforced the pressure to have a traditionally large family (p < .05). Moreover, son preference determined fertility behavior regardless of urban or rural residence, educational level, living arrangements, and household registration types. Nevertheless, the one child certificate was successful in persuading women to comply with the one child policy. Indeed, government control was the factor which most influenced fertility behavior.

Only one world: our own to make and to keep.

The founder and publisher of the magazine Scientific American has written this book about how we should put our energies into preserving the environment and promoting sustainable development. The industrial revolution is still occurring in this world. It split the world into 2 separate worlds: The affluent industrial nations and about 130 traditional, poor nations. Beginning in 1950, the industrial nations had increased their consumption of goods per capita 4 times. The industrial revolution was able to keep production ahead of population growth, so when the peoples of the industrialized nations (almost 25% of the world's population) were convinced their 1st sons and daughters would live, they reduced population growth to replacement levels via low birth rates and low death rates. The industrial revolution has just recently reached the populations living in the poor nations. As in the industrialized nations, this has resulted in increased life expectancy but child mortality (<5 year old children) remains high so people continue to have many children. Therefore these nations are experiencing a population explosion that has increased the size of the world's population 2-fold since 1950. Today the world population stands greater than 5 billion people. The author contends the most effective means to controlling population growth is economic development in the poor nations. Economic development is also the best means to protecting the environment. The rich nations must transfer its technology and provide considerable economic assistance to these nations. The exploiter of nature (industrialized nations) must lead the toward stewardship of our earth. These actions will ultimately heal the rupture between the peoples of these 2 worlds and all people will be part of a common humanity.

The obstetric fistula: factors associated with improved pregnancy outcome after a successful repair.

Researchers compared data on 75 women whose vesico-vaginal fistulae (VVF) were repaired and who delivered at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital in Zaria, Nigeria between 1986 and 1990 with data on 80 women who also delivered at the same hospital during the same period but whose fistulae were not repaired to examine those factors linked to improvements in pregnancy outcome in VVF patients who had undergone surgery to repair the fistulae. Women's ages ranged from 15 to 40 years. Most VVF cases were women of the Hausa-Fulani ethnic group (98.7%) and illiterate women (99.4%). 12.3% of the VVF cases were <20 years old and who tended to be subject to the influence and dominance of husbands, parents, and the elderly within the community. Successful repair of the VVF reduced the abortion rate (4% vs. 21.25%), incidence of premature rupture of membranes (1.3% vs. 10%), perinatal mortality (13% vs. 33.9%), and incidence of low birth weight (20.3% vs. 37.3%). It improved birth weight (2.82 kg vs. 2.57 kg). Prenatal care contributed to an increase in the acceptance rate for elective cesarean section (25.5% vs. 6.8%). It also resulted in early referral of cases to the hospital during labor (hours of labor before admission among emergency cesarean section cases, 8.5 vs. 22.8; p<.001, among vaginal deliveries, 6.39 vs. 11; p<.02). Women whose 1st pregnancy occurred after onset of the VVF waited at home during labor the longest (15.6 hours) and thus suffered the highest recurrence of VVF if it had been repaired (17.6%) and, for women of parity <4, the highest perinatal mortality (39.2%). Thus health workers should aggressively improve prenatal care and successfully repair VVf especially among younger women to increase acceptance of elective cesarean section and to improve the overall pregnancy outcome.

Role, status changes and family planning use among Cambodian refugee women.

Feminism is defined as the rebalance of available opportunities and is concerned with women's loived experience with gender relations and the imbalance in opportunities for women. A feminist perspective is usedin the ethnographic analysis of the relationship between Cambodian women's resettlement experiences and their role, status, childbearing interest, and family planning (FP) use. There were questions about what cultural motivators and barriers influence Cambodian women and whether role and sttus changes affect use of FP and childbearing. The purposes were also to provide information to the nursing community caring for this group, to add to knowledge about women's health, and to refine and expand the domain of community health nursing theory. Ethnographic interviews and participant observation were conducted among 23 Cambodian men and 30 women and emphasize the informant's lived experience. Attention was given to assuring truth value, applicability, consistency, and neutrality. Translators were used. The results emphasize the childbearing role of Cambodian women; the role of socioeconomic status is recognized. Women's status since resettlement has not changed significantly; women are still largely responsible for the budge. There is concern about the increase in premartial pregnancy and common law rlationships which would be viewed culturally as a loss in status. Status is gained through education and employment. Early marriage and childbearing is still preferred. The ideal husband and wife, opportunites, hopes and plans, changes, and men's overt control and women's convert control are identified. Changes include an increase in independence and disregard for disobeying their husbands or fathers. This transition is still characterized by married women living within set boundaries and restricted FP. Women's sexuality is tied to family honor. Exposure to FP 1st occurred in refugee camps in Thailand. Secuality information, childbearing interest, and FP use are discussed prewar, during the war, camp years, and resettlement. Cambodians do not use FP because the concept is unfamiliar, inconsistent beliefs particularly about undesirable side effects of FP methods, and perceived negative changes in women's behavior (tubal ligation leads to release of women's passion). Men are iumportant in women's decision making. Limitations are Khmer language barriers and generalizability.

[Population problems and population policy in Kosovo and Metohia]

This is a collection of nine studies by various authors on the demographics of the ethnic Albanian population of Yugoslavia. The first six chapters examine fertility, mortality, migration, population characteristics, economic conditions, educational status, and household structure. The final three chapters analyze the socioeconomic implications of current demographic trends, various population scenarios, and family planning prospects. The authors speculate that the Albanians may be the last high-fertility population in Europe. (SUMMARY IN ENG) (ANNOTATION)

[Behavioral problems among 13-16 year olds and housing zones. An epidemiological approach]

"We have compared two samples of young teenagers [in France]...taken in areas with different types of housing (urban and semi-rural) to detect differences in the incidence of various behavioural problems (drug-taking, violence, criminal acts) in different housing zones....We find that some social variables (sex, educational background, parents' marital status, housing zone) did have a significant impact...." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND SPA) (EXCERPT)

[Different from the others: the situation of Germans in the Soviet Union and German emigrants in the Federal Republic of Germany]

Results are presented from two surveys. One covered a sample of 879 ethnic Germans who migrated from the Soviet Union to West Germany in 1989-1990, and the other covered over 1,000 ethnic Germans living in Siberia and Kazakhstan. Information is included on the number and distribution of Germans in the former Soviet Union, their religion, educational status, occupational structure, language, political and social status, motives for migration, knowledge of West Germany, and integration in West Germany. (ANNOTATION)

Household partition in rural Bangladesh.

"In this paper the author uses longitudinal data collected in rural Bangladesh to [examine] the process of household partition. There are three main parts to the paper. The first consists of a descriptive analysis of household structure which indicates that partition is an important determinant of household structure in this population, particularly for young couples in the early stages of family formation. Secondly, a procedure is developed for the analysis of household partition, which makes use of data on relationship to head of household....Thirdly, data on the educational attainment of children are used to provide an indirect measure of the extent to which recently partitioned households continued to operate as a single economic and social unit. Although partitioned households remained in close proximity, they exhibited significant independence with regard to decisions about the educational attainment of children, something that is not apparent in jointly-resident sub-households." (EXCERPT)

The Hispanic population in the United States: March 1992.

"This report presents a statistical portrait of the Hispanic origin population in the United States....Most of the data shown were collected by the Bureau of the Census in the March 1992 supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS)....Two important new features distinguish this report from previous reports in this series. First, this is the first report on the Hispanic origin population to shown the characteristics of persons who are White, but not of Hispanic origin, and compare them to persons of Hispanic origin....Second, this report introduces a new educational attainment variable that asks for specific degree completion levels, rather than just years of school completed." (EXCERPT)

[General population census, 1988: analysis of final data. Sociocultural characteristics]

This is an analysis of social and cultural data from the 1988 census of Niger concerning literacy, educational status, ethnic groups, language, religion, foreigners, and the handicapped. (ANNOTATION)

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