Natalism (also called pronatalism or the pro-birth position) is an ideology that promotes the
reproduction of
human life as the preeminent objective of being human.
[
Compare:
] The term, as it relates to the belief itself, comes from the French word for 'birthrate', .
Natalism promotes
child-bearing and
parenthood as desirable for social reasons and to ensure the continuance of humanity. Natalism in
public policy
Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public ...
typically seeks to create financial and social incentives for populations to reproduce, such as providing tax incentives that reward having and supporting children. Those who adhere to more strict interpretations of natalism may seek to limit access to
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregnan ...
and
contraception, as well. The opposite of natalism is
antinatalism
Antinatalism or anti-natalism is the view that procreation is wrong. Antinatalists argue that humans should abstain from procreation because it is morally wrong. In scholarly and literary writings, various ethical arguments have been put forth i ...
.
Motives
Religion
Many religions encourage procreation and religiousness in members is tied to higher fertility rates.
Judaism,
Islam, and major branches of
Christianity, including
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the
Catholic Church encourage procreation. In 1979 one research paper indicated that
Amish
The Amish (; pdc, Amisch; german: link=no, Amische), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptist Christian church fellowships with Swiss German and Alsatian origins. They are closely related to Mennonite churche ...
people had an average of 6.8 children per family. A movement among conservative Protestants, known as the
Quiverfull movement, advocates for large families and views children as blessings from God.
Other populations
The
!Kung San people in southern Africa do not practice birth control.
Intention to have children
An intention to have children is a substantial
fertility factor in actually ending up doing so, but childless individuals who intend to have children immediately or within two or three years are generally more likely to succeed than those who intend to have children in the long term.
There are many determinants of the intention to have children, including:
*The mother's preference of family size, which influences that of the children through early adulthood.
Likewise, the
extended family influences fertility intentions, with increased number of nephews and nieces increasing the preferred number of children.
[
*Social pressure from kin and friends to have another child.][
*Social support. However, a study from West Germany came to the result that both men receiving no support at all and men receiving support from many different people have a lower probability of intending to have another child, with the latter probably related to coordination problems.][
*Happiness, with happier people tending to want more children.][
*Secure housing situation.
]
Natalistic politics
Some countries with population decline
A population decline (also sometimes called underpopulation, depopulation, or population collapse) in humans is a reduction in a human population size. Over the long term, stretching from prehistory to the present, Earth's total human population ...
offer incentives to the people to have large families as a means of national efforts to reverse declining populations. Incentives may include a one-time baby bonus, or ongoing child benefit
Child benefit or children's allowance is a social security payment which is distributed to the parents or guardians of children, teenagers and in some cases, young adults. A number of countries operate different versions of the program. In most cou ...
payments or tax reductions. Some impose penalties or taxes on those with fewer children. Some nations, such as Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan, have implemented, or tried to implement, interventionist natalist policies, creating incentives for larger families among native stock. Immigrants are generally not part of natalist policies.
Paid maternity and paternity leave policies can also be used as an incentive. For example, Sweden has generous parental leave wherein parents are entitled to share 16 months' paid leave per child, the cost divided between both employer and state.
Books advocating natalist policies include ''What to Expect When No One's Expecting
''What to Expect When No One's Expecting: America's Coming Demographic Disaster'' is a book by the ''Weekly Standard'' columnist Jonathan V. Last about declining birthrates in the United States and elsewhere around the world and the implications ...
'' by Jonathan V. Last.
Russia
Vladimir Putin's government also uses natalist policies by offering rewards and promoting larger families.
Hungary
The Hungarian government of Viktor Orbán
Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between 2 ...
in 2019 announced pecuniary incentives (including eliminating taxes for mothers with more than three children, and reducing credit payments and easier access to loans), and expanding day care and kindergarten access.
See also
* Child tax credit
A child tax credit (CTC) is a tax credit for parents with dependent children given by various countries. The credit is often linked to the number of dependent children a taxpayer has and sometimes the taxpayer's income level. For example, in ...
* Fecundity
* Human overpopulation
* Natural fertility
* Political demography Political demography is the study of the relationship between politics and population change. Population change is driven by classic demographic mechanisms – birth, death, age structure, and migration.
However, in political demography, there is ...
* Population ethics
* Replacement fertility rate
The total fertility rate (TFR) of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if:
# she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime
# she were ...
* Tax on childlessness
The tax on childlessness (russian: налог на бездетность, translit=nalog na bezdetnost) was imposed in the Soviet Union and other Communist countries, starting in the 1940s, as part of their natalist policies. Joseph Stalin's regim ...
References
{{Reflist, 30em
Human population planning
Philosophy of biology