Implications of High Fertility in Developing Countries: A Multilevel Analysis

Ivy Kodzi, Øystein Kravdal

The primary goal of this project is to assess the importance of a woman’s fertility (wanted and unwanted) and the level of fertility (alternatively, population growth or change in age structure in the village, district, or province) on her children’s welfare measured by indicators such as mortality, nutritional status, and education. Few studies have examined the effects of high fertility or population growth at a subnational level, and there has been very little interest in separating effects of aggregate-level fertility from effects of individual fertility. We will control for the educational level of the woman and the average education at the relevant level of aggregation, as well as various other factors that may have a bearing on fertility. We will explore how individual and aggregate education (and women’s autonomy) influence fertility through various pathways. Throughout the project, we will take into account that key effects may be context-dependent. In addition, our research will explore the possibility that the effects on child outcomes may depend on the child’s gender and the gender composition of his or her siblings.