Willingness to bear the first child among the Chinese childless population: a national survey study

Having a first child is a contributing factor to having a second or third child; however, current research focuses on second and third children, and the present study aims to investigate the intention to have a first child and its main influencing factors among the childless population aged 15-49 in China, as well as analysing the influencing factors by age group.

As part of the 'Survey on the Psychology and Behaviour of Chinese Residents', this survey was conducted on 6941 residents aged 15-49 in 32 provinces across China. The survey was conducted from 20 June to 31 August 2022.

Out of 6941 respondents, the mean score of willingness to have a first child (score range: 0-100) was 42.51. 17.33% of the respondents had no willingness to have a child (0), while 9.54% had a high willingness to have a child (100). Intention to have a first child seems to peak in the age group 30-34 years (p < 0.0001). Being male (p < 0.000, OR = 0.178), having siblings (p1 < 0.035, OR1 = 1.324; p2 < 0.000, OR2 = 1.995) and good family communication (p < 0.003, OR = 1.023), and high self-efficacy (p = 0.001, OR = 1.558) were associated with higher fertility intentions. Influential factors in the lower age group (15-24 years) were mainly related to family and social support, in the 25-29 years age group they were more related to personal, family and social, while in the 30-39 years age group they were related to economic stability such as property and marital status.

The willingness to have a child is at a low to medium level among those of childbearing age who have not had children in China. There is a need to adopt a staggered policy for the younger age group to reduce perceived economic pressure, reduce occupational pressure on the age group, and increase childcare and occupational fertility friendly environments. In addition, there is a need for multisectoral economic compensation and educational district planning to alleviate the "don't want to save" and solve the "don't dare to give birth" problem. People who have had one child are more likely to want to have a second child, so the government and society need to do more to support the desire to have a child, thereby increasing the national fertility rate.