Title:
DESIRE FOR ADDITIONAL CHILDREN - STUDY AMONG CURRENTLY MARRIED WOMEN IN RURAL TAMIL NADU

Authors:
Dr. Kh. Bimolata devi

Abstract:
Fertility desires and intentions are central in theoretical and empirical approaches to studying childbearing behavior. Coal's (1973) seminal formulation of demographic transition theory argues that fertility will decline when childbearing enters the "calculus of conscious choice"- that is, when having children becomes a subject about which it is possible to have preferences. India is a multi-religious multi lingual and multi ethnic country with vast socio cultural differentials which have strong bearing on the fertility preference. The main objectives of present study were to study level of desire for children, to study the differentials in additional desire of children among the respondents and to examine the effect of socio-cultural factors on desire for additional children of currently married women in rural Tamil nadu. This study was based on a field survey conducted partularly in the Schedule Caste community of Bhuvanagiri Block under the Chidambaram Taluk Cuddalore District in Tamil particularly Nadu. A simple random sampling techniques was adopted to select the sample population The total sample size was 253 women those who were in the age 18 -30 at least having one live birth has been selected Statistical methods such as percentage, cross tabulation, Chi-square and logistic regression techniques have been used The result shows that nearly two third of the respondents (62.8%) have expressed that they does not want any more children in future. More than ninety percent of the respondents who were married in the younger age 19 years do not want to have children in future .Little less than half of the total respondents (47.1 %) wants to have children in future than their counterparts in nuclear families (32.1 percent) and the chi-square test turnout to be moderately significant in this regard (p<0.05) Related to educational status, as the husband's education increases the percentage of respondents desire to have children also increases, (high school and below 25 percent), higher secondary (43.4 percent), degree and above (70.4 percent). The chi-square test results turn out to the highly significant in these regards (p<0.001). Around half of the respondent(49.9 percent) who were house wives have repressed desire to have children and the chi- square test shown moderately associated (P<_ .002). Eighty two percent of the respondents those already have only female surviving children were desire any children than their counterparts who have already male children (72.7 percent) the chi-square result shows there was highly significant association in this regard (p<_.001level of significance). Overall among the background variables like age at marriage, family type, husband' education, occupation of the respondent, family income, total surviving children etc have significantly associated with the desire for additional children in future. The results of logistic regression model shows there was a significant effects on desire for additional children in future among the respondents in the study area. Base on the findings some suggestions have been framed.