Fertility intentions in young Danish adults

Fertility rates are declining worldwide, including in Denmark. We investigated fertility intentions in young Danish adults.

In a cross-sectional study based on the Danish National Birth Cohort, we investigated the wish for children, the desired number of children and the preferred ages for having first and last child among 20,594 women and 11,526 men aged 20-28 years.

Among women, 81.1% wished to have children, 7.8% did not want children and 11.1% were unsure. Among men, 79.9% wished to have children, 8.7% did not and 11.3% were unsure. The average number of children desired among those who wished for children was 2.46 (SD: 0.6) for women and 2.43 (SD: 0.7) for men. The preferred age at first and last birth was 27.3 (SD: 2.2) and 32.9 (SD: 3.1) years in women and 28.4 (SD: 2.2) and 34.0 (SD: 3.7) years in men, respectively.

Fertility intentions among young Danish adults remain positive but conflict with observed fertility trends, suggesting a gap between desired and achieved fertility. This highlights the potential for policy interventions that address constraints emerging over the life course to impact the declining fertility rate.

Funded by the European Union (ERC, BIOSFER, 101071773) and partly by the Research Council of Norway (project No 262700). Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the EU or the European Research Council. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for any statement expressed herein.

Not relevant.