The 1997 Economic Crisis, Changes in the Pattern of Achieved Fertility and Ideal Number of Children in Korea

Abstract

The main purpose of this study is to explore the effects of the 1997 Asian economic crisis on the level of achieved and desired fertility and on the pattern of socioeconomic differentials. This chapter explores recent changes in the level of fertility and ideal number of children (INC) according to socioeconomic status of the couple. This study focuses on a comparative analysis of children ever born (CEB), the post-1998 CEB and INC of married women. For the second round of comparative analysis, the study population is split into two groups: those married before 1997 and those married for the first time in 1997 or thereafter. The level of CEB and INC as well as the pattern of socioeconomic differentials of the two groups are then compared. The main data set used for the analysis is from the 2006 Korean National Fertility, Family Health and Welfare Survey. Results reveal that the economic crisis has significantly affected the causal mechanisms of Korean fertility. CEB and the post-1998 CEB show contrasting patterns according to socioeconomic status of the couple. In the context of ultra-low fertility after the economic crisis, the relationship between socioeconomic status and the level of fertility is found to be positive. For the highest socioeconomic group, however, the level of recent fertility tends to decrease slightly as socioeconomic status rises. The level of INC does not show contrasting patterns according to mother’s education or husband’s occupation. It is found that the economic crisis has not changed the level and pattern of socioeconomic differentials in INC significantly. The gap between achieved and desired fertility turns out to be widest among those with the lowest socioeconomic status and narrowest among those with middle or upper-middle status.