Male and Female Fertility in Taiwan: Trends and Transitions, 1975–2004

Abstract

This chapter shifts the research focus to a specific locale, namely, Taiwan. This region is chosen because it has detailed male fertility data readily available. The chapter starts the analysis by longitudinally examining male TFRs and ASFRs as compared to those of females during the past few decades. Findings of this chapter echo the results shown in Chapter 4 that studies male and female fertility patterns in 43 countries and places. Several new findings also emerge based on examining the case of Taiwan, which will be discussed in a great detail in this chapter. When investigating the age-specific fertility differentials by sex, the chapter takes educational attainments into consideration. It discusses how education serves as a factor to differentiate male and female fertility. The final part of the analysis in this chapter moves to an examination of male and female fertility in 23 subregions of Taiwan in 2002. Theoretical frameworks explaining female fertility reduction are applied to account for male fertility changes in the 23 subregions. Results show that current fertility theories do not explain male fertility as well as they account for female fertility. It suggests that research exploring determinants of male fertility is warranted.