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Childbearing behavior in East Asian countries has changed rapidly during the past half century from an average of five to seven children per family, to replacement-level fertility, and subsequently to unprecedentedly low levels, the lowest in the world. This article analyzes fertility trends in Hong Kong, Japan, singapore, south Korea, and Taiwan using cohort fertility data and methods, then examines social and economic causes of the childbearing trends, and surveys policies pursued to reverse the fertility trends. Postponement of childbearing started in the 1970s with continuously fewer delayed births being 'recuperated,' which resulted in ultra-low fertility. A rapid expansion of education and employment among women in a patriarchal environment has generated a stark dilemma for women who would like to combine childbearing with a career. Policy responses have been slow, with a more serious attempt to address issues in recent years. Thus far public and private institutions are not devoting sufficient attention to generating broad social change supportive of parenting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses global fertility rates. As of 2006, thirty countries have fertility rates below 1.5 births per woman, a highly alarming trend. The author advocates for institutional settings that promote fertility, and that low fertility is an unintended outcome of changing social and economic institutions, specifically social liberalism and new capitalism. The lowest global fertility rates occur in Asian nations such as Singapore, South Korea, and Hong Kong. The author notes that a solution lies in the instutitional support of family life by federal governments.