Reproductive settings of the population and factors affecting them

Abstract

Demographic problems, including the low birth rate, are among the most acute problems in Russia. The solution of demographic problems requires an integrated approach and it is based (among other things) on the study of the reproductive attitudes of various groups of the population. The aim is to study the opinion of the population about the problem of fertility and attitude to family values. An anonymous survey was conducted using a Google form (352 citizens of the Russian Federation). The sample was random. The average age of the respondents was 38.6 years. The questionnaires were processed using the applied statistical programs Excel and Statistica 10. The study showed that the presence of children in the family was considered necessary by only 68.4 % of the respondents. 45.3 % would like to have two children; 30.6 % — three or more; 17.5 % — one child; 6.6% of respondents do not want to have them at all. The main motives and prerequisites for the birth of a child were: the joy of motherhood; the importance of material support from the state; and procreation; the main obstacles to having a child were the lack of confidence in a stable material income, the unstable situation in the country, the fear of losing a job or destroying a career, the lack of confidence in getting a decent education for all children and further employment, poor housing conditions, and the lack of a permanent partner. The share of those supporting the idea of child-free was 24.9 %; 41.8 % accept same-sex marriages. Thus, both the importance of measures of social and material support for motherhood and childhood and the relevance of the problem of family and moral education of the population have been confirmed.

Keywords:

birth rate, demographic policy, reproductive attitudes