A big family with plenty of children, or a modest two-children home?
Different people have different reasons for deciding to have children, depending on the economic, political and cultural conditions that surround them. Here, we will look at birth rates in the UK.
There is a notable demographic shift here in the UK with regard to birth rates, so we are also going to look into the causes and consequences of recent trends. In the following article we will explore:
- The definition of a birth rate.
- Changes in birth rate trends in the UK.
- The reasons for these changes.
- How birth rates have been changing worldwide, and the effects of this.
Let's get started!
Birth rates: meaning
The study of population sizes and structures is called demography. This involves examining birth rates, death rates, and migration trends, as well as why they happen and what their impacts are.
What is the 'birth rate'?
Simply put, the term birth rate is a test of the rate at which babies are born. It's commonly called the crude birth rate. The most widely-used definition of the term involves measuring the number of births as compared to the total size of a given population.
According to Merriam-Webster, the term birth rate is defined as:
"the ratio between births and individuals in a specified population and time".
Measuring the 'birth rate'
Measuring a population's crude birth rate is also relatively simple. Demographers will compute the number of births for every thousand members of that population, for that year.
If a population's birth rate is 20, that means 20 live babies were born for every thousand citizens of the population in that year.
The crude birth rate is usually measured by country. The birth rate is just one of the several ways in which birth-related population changes are studied.
Another important measure to be aware of is total fertility rate (TFR). TFR is the most popular measure used by demographers. It looks at the average number of children that women have in their childbearing years and is recalculated every year.
The importance of measuring birth rates
Combining the measures of birth rates and fertility rates provides demographers with an accurate idea of whether a given population is shrinking or growing.
Fig. 1 - It is important to contextualise birth rate patterns within the structures and functions of other aspects of society.
This is important because rapid changes in the structure of a population (regardless of whether it's increasing or declining) can heavily impact society's infrastructure. This includes agencies like the economy and the healthcare system.
UK birth rates
Demographic trends have been subject to high levels of fluctuation in the UK since the early 20th century. In 1901, the UK had a population of around 38 million. According to the World Bank, this number is now more than 65 million.
It's important to note that the rate at which the British population is growing has significantly declined.
The average population growth rate was 1 percent per year at the turn of the 20th century. In the 21st century, it is a quarter of that - growing about .25 percent per year. The UK's birth rate in 2022 is 11.322.
While population growth rates are slowing, the statistics are still indicative of population growth. Natural change is a key concept in this discussion.
Natural change is the difference between the number of births and deaths, which is a key indicator of population size and growth. If there are more births than deaths, a population will experience a natural increase.
There have been more births than deaths in the UK every year, except for one, since 1901. This is another indication, despite the decline in birth rates over time, that the UK's population is still growing.
World birth rate
The World Population Review offers insights into birth rates around the world every year. They are careful to mention that there are stark differences in birth rates between different countries. Here are some notable recent statistics:
- In 2021, the average global birth rate was 17.873.
- In 2021, Nigeria was the country with the highest global birth rate, at 47.28.
- In 2021, Monaco was the country with the lowest global birth rate, at 6.5.
Reasons for declining birth rates in sociology
While it's useful for demographers to study population structures and changes, there's little use in collecting this data if we aren't also considering what it means for the world. Sociologists examine the nature, origins, and impacts of changing birth rates from several different perspectives.
Now that we've established the general declining pattern of birth rates, let's take a look at its causes and effects.
Individualisation
Post-modernity has triggered many changes that have caused decreasing birth rates. The decline of traditional norms and values - a process that Ulrich Beck and Elisabeth Beck-Gernsheim (1995) call individualisation - plays a significant role here.
Increased secularisation (that is, the decline of religion) means that contraception is no longer stigmatised as it once was in certain societies. Secularisation is argued to be a key characteristic of postmodern society.
It's important to note that many sociologists are critical of postmodernist theories, arguing that remaining childless is not always a choice that the individual makes. Rather, they are forced into childlessness due to the changing modern world, where children are not a possibility because people cannot afford to have them.
Furthermore, the individualisation thesis also explains that people are free and willing to create a life for themselves. This is a freedom that children can potentially take from adults, as a result of the familial and economic responsibilities they demand.
Changing gender roles
Anthony Giddens and Ulrich Beck regard changing gender roles as the most important factor in explaining declining birth rates. The rise of feminism has resulted in increased opportunities for women to pursue full-time studies and careers; in addition, there is less pressure on women (in some societies) to have children.
This is demonstrated by changes in the UK's TFR over the last century. The estimated TFR in the UK was 3.5 children per woman in 1900. This has declined to just 1.58 children per woman in 2021.
The change in gender roles is accompanied by a shift in what it means not to have children. Instead of seeing themselves as 'childless', many women now see themselves as 'child-free'.
The terminology is key: the latter is indicative of a women's choice to not bear children.
Economic changes
Globally, the trend is that the wealthier the country, the lower the birth rate. Economic growth and better living standards mean that adults have fewer children. This is because of:
decreased infant mortality rates,
improved hygiene and sanitation, and
improvements in healthcare and the developing role of the welfare state.
The drop in infant mortality rates means that adults don't need to have 'replacement babies' to replace deceased children.
Equally, children are no longer the economic asset they used to be. In the early 19th century, children worked and contributed to the family income. However, child labour has long since been banned, and the length of schooling has been extended. Children are now financially dependent on their families for much longer than before.
Effects of declining birth rates worldwide
We will now look at some effects of declining birth rates. How does this impact society?
Fig. 2 - People are choosing to have fewer and fewer children as cultural standards and economic conditions change
Dependency ratio
The long-term decline in birth and fertility rates has led to changes in the dependency ratio.
The dependency ratio is the relationship between the economically productive part of the population, and non-workers or dependents, such as children or the elderly.
A lower birth rate means that soon, there will be fewer people of working age, which will lead to greater numbers of dependent people. This is bound to result in a strain on public services, such as hospitals and welfare, as well as on the working population, to meet the social and financial needs of dependents.
The reason why this has been offset in the UK thus far is due to high levels of migration into the country, which has balanced out the sizes of working and non-working populations.
Gender roles
Furthermore, falling fertility rates can lead to even further changes in gender roles, giving women more time for their careers and perhaps leading to relationships between women and men becoming more equal.
Families and households
Falling birth and fertility rates in the UK over the past century indicate that families, on average, are much smaller than they once were. It is most common for there to be two children in families across the UK, with the number of women choosing to have three or more children - and in some cases, any children at all - consistently decreasing from decade to decade since the early 20th century.
Birth Rates - Key takeaways
The birth rate, commonly called a crude birth rate, is a measure of the number of births as compared to the total size of a given population.
Total fertility rate (TFR) is also a popular demographic measure, which looks at the average number of children that women have in their childbearing years.
While the UK's population is growing, the rate at which it is doing so has steadily declined since the 1900s.
The individualisation thesis suggests that, by breaking away from traditional norms and values, adults are finding freedom in childlessness.
Economic growth has also resulted in declining birth rates, as children generally live longer and are dependent on their caregivers for more time than was historically the case.
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
