Attitudes towards childbearing, population, and the environment: Examining prevalence and demographic and psychological correlates

Environmental concerns may influence personal fertility decisions and general opinions about childbearing and population, but research on this topic is still relatively scarce. In two studies based on large Swedish datasets, we compare the prevalence of various concerns, behaviors, and opinions about the environment, childbearing, and population. We find little evidence that environmental concerns have a notable connection with fertility outcomes, but many people do link environmental protection to childbearing decisions. Most respondents said environmental considerations should influence people’s decisions to have children, and see global population growth as a problem. A substantial minority supported government efforts to limit population growth. We examine and discuss how such eco-reproductive concerns and behaviors vary with key demographic and psychological correlates emphasized in previous research on fertility and environmentalism. We conclude that environmental considerations are influencing opinions about population and childbearing, but are not having much impact on childbearing decisions in Sweden today.