Four Themes in Fertility Research.

Unfortunately, the interpretation of these four themes in describing fertility through time is lost in the current literature because they either concentrate on one or two themes, or include so many extraneous variables that it becomes impossible to examine their interaction.[4] In this paper, an examination is made of how these themes have combined to describe U.S. fertility since 1920. In order to obtain an unambiguous picture each theme will be represented by only one variable. After selecting the variables and estimating a model, an examination of the changing role these variables have had in explaining changes in fertility (the total fertility rate) throughout much of this century will be made. Finally, the implications these themes have for future fertility will be examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]