{"id":2399587,"date":"2025-02-06T08:25:58","date_gmt":"2025-02-06T13:25:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pro-natal-policies-fail-because-people-dont-want-kids\/"},"modified":"2025-02-06T08:33:20","modified_gmt":"2025-02-06T13:33:20","slug":"pro-natal-policies-fail-because-people-dont-want-kids","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pro-natal-policies-fail-because-people-dont-want-kids\/","title":{"rendered":"Pro-Natal Policies Fail Because People Don\u2019t Want Kids"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">16<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpro-natal-policies-fail-because-people-dont-want-kids%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2399587&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The summary revolves \u2063around \u200cthe <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/u-s-population-projected-to-shrink-for-first-time-ever-by-end-of-century\/\" title=\"U.S. population to decline for first time ever by century&#039;s end.\">declining fertility\u200c rates<\/a> in various\u2062 countries, using Hungary&#8217;s experience \u200din 2024 as a cautionary tale. Despite its economic incentives aimed at reversing\u2062 falling birth rates, \u2063Hungary saw \u200dfertility plummet too a record low, \u2063mirroring trends in other nations, including the \u200dU.S.,Nordic countries,and Poland,where generous family \u2062policies have not\u2063 considerably increased birth \u2064rates.<\/p>\n<p>A study from *The Lancet* forecasted that by\u2064 2100, 95%\u200b of\u2064 countries could experience sub-replacement fertility levels,\u200c with pro-natal \u200bpolicies yielding minimal impacts. \u2064Public opinion data \u200bin the U.S.shows that a large majority of adults\u2063 under 50 who do not want children cite personal preference \u2064rather then financial constraints as\u2063 their main\u2062 reason\u2014a trend suggesting a \u200cshift in\u200c societal priorities \u2063rather than just economic factors.<\/p>\n<p>Broader \u200cglobal patterns of declining fertility\u2064 rates challenge conventional explanations such \u2064as literacy, urbanization, and women&#8217;s workforce\u200c participation. Cultural\u200d factors and personal preferences \u200bappear to play a more critical role, as seen in countries like Israel, which\u2062 maintains a high fertility rate due to cultural norms favoring larger families.<\/p>\n<p>The discussion raises concerns about a potential depopulation crisis fueled by international organizations&#8217; promotion of anti-natal ideologies and overpopulation fears. The author suggests that to counteract these \u2062trends, societies must revitalize\u2064 pro-natal values rather than solely rely on government policies. The piece emphasizes that\u2064 cultural\u200b shifts\u2014prioritizing marriage and child-rearing over individualistic pursuits\u2014are essential for future demographic stability.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Hungary&rsquo;s fertility rate dropped to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2025-01-31\/hungary-births-drop-to-record-in-blow-to-orban-s-family-policies?embedded-checkout=true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">record low<\/a> in 2024 despite its best efforts to reverse the birth dearth through economic incentives. Those advocating for similar policies in the United States could learn from Hungary&rsquo;s unsuccessful pro-natal programs, which have a track record of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.unfpa.org\/sites\/default\/files\/pub-pdf\/Policy_responses_low_fertility_UNFPA_WP_Final_corrections_7Feb2020_CLEAN.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">negligible results<\/a> everywhere they have been implemented.<\/p>\n<p>Nordic countries have the most generous <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usnews.com\/news\/best-countries\/best-countries-to-raise-a-family\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">family policies<\/a> in the world, yet <a href=\"https:\/\/data.worldbank.org\/indicator\/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN?locations=NO-SE-DK-FI-IS\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fewer children<\/a> are born there almost every year. Even in socially conservative Poland, where the &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.pl\/web\/family\/family-500-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Family 500+<\/a>&rdquo; program is widely popular, the fertility rate has declined to its <a href=\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/europe\/2023\/07\/31\/poland-birth-rate-lowest-since-world-war-ii-demographic-crisis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lowest level<\/a> since World War II in 2023.<\/p>\n<p>A Lancet <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thelancet.com\/journals\/lancet\/article\/PIIS0140-6736(24)00550-6\/fulltext\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">study<\/a> projects that sub-replacement fertility will occur in 95 percent of countries by 2100, and that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/introducing-the-great-replenishment\/\" title=\"Introducing the \u201cGreat Replenishment\u201d\">pro-natal policies<\/a> will increase fertility rates by just 0.2 (the required rate to sustain a population is 2.1).<\/p>\n<p>The common narrative justifying these policy proposals is that raising children has become unaffordable. But if men and women worldwide are forgoing child-rearing due to financial concerns, the expected outcome of pro-natal incentives would be notable increases in fertility. The ineffectiveness of these programs suggests an alternative explanation: Raising the next generation isn&rsquo;t a main priority of 21<sup>st<\/sup>-century adults.<\/p>\n<h2>Polls<\/h2>\n<p>The U.S. doesn&rsquo;t have an explicit pro-natal policy, but a Pew Research Center <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pewresearch.org\/social-trends\/2024\/07\/25\/reasons-adults-give-for-not-having-children\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">poll<\/a> indicates that its outcome would likely be negligible. A majority (57 percent) of U.S. adults under 50 who never want to have children say &ldquo;they just don&rsquo;t want to&rdquo; is a major reason. The next most popular excuse is &ldquo;they want to focus on other things.&rdquo; Only 36 percent say affordability is a top concern. One-fifth admit they &ldquo;really don&rsquo;t like children.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>These aren&rsquo;t the views of a fringe, anti-natal minority. Nearly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pewresearch.org\/social-trends\/2024\/07\/25\/the-experiences-of-u-s-adults-who-dont-have-children\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">half<\/a> (47 percent) of childless adults under 50 say it&rsquo;s unlikely they will ever have kids, up 10 percent from 2018.<\/p>\n<p>Child-rearing costs aren&rsquo;t dissuading Americans from reproducing &mdash; they just seemingly prefer to spend their income on travel, sports betting, Netflix, and Gucci bags than on diapers and playpens. As a Journal of Economic Perspectives <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/articles?id=10.1257\/jep.36.1.151\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">study<\/a> concluded, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/u-s-life-expectancy-fell-again-in-2021\/\" title=\"U.S. Life Expectancy Fell Again in 2021\">declining fertility rate<\/a> in the U.S. is driven by &ldquo;shifting preferences,&rdquo; not economic conditions.<\/p>\n<h2>Flawed Explanations<\/h2>\n<p>Literacy, improvements in health, industrialization, urbanization, contraception, and women&rsquo;s increased access to higher education and labor markets are often cited as broader factors precipitating downward trends in fertility. But this explanation is becoming increasingly insufficient because birth rates are dropping worldwide in rich and poor countries alike. Myanmar and Nepal, which are designated by the United Nations (U.N.) as &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/unctad.org\/topic\/least-developed-countries\/list\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Least Developed Countries<\/a>&rdquo; (LDCs), are both experiencing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cia.gov\/the-world-factbook\/field\/total-fertility-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sub-replacement fertility<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Israel, meanwhile, ranks &ldquo;very high&rdquo; in the U.N.&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/hdr.undp.org\/data-center\/specific-country-data#\/countries\/ISR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Human Development Index<\/a> and exceeds the U.S. in <a href=\"https:\/\/data.worldbank.org\/indicator\/SL.TLF.CACT.FE.NE.ZS?locations=IL-US\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">female labor force participation<\/a>. But Israel maintains a commendable <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oecd.org\/en\/publications\/society-at-a-glance-2024_918d8db3-en.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fertility rate<\/a> of 2.9.<\/p>\n<p>This is a result of Jewish cultural values, which prize marriage and child-rearing, especially among Ultra-Orthodox Jews, whose <a href=\"https:\/\/en.idi.org.il\/haredi\/2023\/?chapter=52002\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fertility rate<\/a> is more than double the national average. But even secular, native-born Jewish women in Israel say the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/stable\/24772958\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ideal family<\/a> consists of three children, whereas European women view two children as ideal.<\/p>\n<p>Israel&rsquo;s tense national security environment can&rsquo;t entirely explain its high fecundity. The Ultra-Orthodox Jewish <a href=\"https:\/\/www.demographic-research.org\/volumes\/vol49\/29\/49-29.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fertility rate<\/a> is nearly identical in both Israel and the U.S., suggesting that culture and religion are important in propelling Jewish natalism.<\/p>\n<p>According to economist Lant Pritchett, the decisive factor that determines a country&rsquo;s fertility is the <a href=\"https:\/\/are.berkeley.edu\/courses\/ARE298\/Readings\/Pritchett1.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">desired number of children<\/a> women say they want to have. Where fertility is high, women want many children; where it is low, women want fewer. Cultural customs and social norms, not government incentives, appear to strongly influence reproductive patterns.<\/p>\n<p>So why do <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">women worldwide suddenly desire smaller families<\/a>? Demographers and economists can only speculate as the global fertility crisis worsens and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/review-eurotrash-why-america-must-reject-the-failed-ideas-of-a-dying-continent\/\" title=\"REVIEW: \u2018Eurotrash: Why America Must Reject the Failed Ideas of a Dying Continent\u2019\">low birth rates<\/a> become irreversible in many countries, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/1403684\/south-korea-birth-rate\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">South Korea<\/a> (0.7) or even <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cfr.org\/blog\/chinas-population-decline-continues\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">China<\/a>, approaching 1.0.<\/p>\n<h2>Depopulation Agenda<\/h2>\n<p>Could the post-war global <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/why-president-trump-must-defund-this-u-n-agency-once-again\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">depopulation<\/a> agenda of the U.N. Population Fund and numerous international nongovernmental organizations &mdash; the Population Council, the International Planned Parenthood Federation, the Club of Rome, etc. &mdash; have contributed to the baby dearth by incessantly promoting neo-Malthusian and anti-natal ideology worldwide?<\/p>\n<p>Overpopulation anxieties remain <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.cdn.yougov.com\/xn0kwsbzum\/UNFPA_Population_Nov2022_topline_W.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">widespread<\/a> globally, even as fertility rates plummet, and nearly <a href=\"https:\/\/papers.ssrn.com\/sol3\/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3918955\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">40 percent of young people<\/a> say they are hesitant to have children due to climate change.<\/p>\n<p>Humanity is woefully unprepared for the specter of depopulation later this century, especially central European and Asian countries that refuse migrants to temporarily offset low birth rates. The current baby bust may result in serious economic, political, and social consequences as the working-age population shrinks and nations experience dwindling resources to provide health care, pensions, and other services to the elderly.<\/p>\n<h2>Affluence and Growth<\/h2>\n<p>Demographer Nicholas Eberstadt has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalreview.com\/magazine\/2021\/10\/18\/can-america-cope-with-demographic-decline\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">outlined<\/a> how prolonged affluence is not incompatible with depopulation, but an aging society places renewed emphasis on the importance of economic freedom.<\/p>\n<p>Sustained growth amid demographic decline will require a less burdensome tax and regulatory environment, lower barriers to trade and investment, and ample opportunity for knowledge creation, innovation, and entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n<p>In the 14th century, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.history.com\/topics\/middle-ages\/black-death\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Black Death<\/a> wiped out almost one-third of Europe&rsquo;s population. Nearly 700 years later, we do not face the peril of a deadly pathogen, but a malady in the human heart, which often no longer wishes to love and nourish posterity.<\/p>\n<p>Such was the blight of ancient Greece in the 2nd century B.C. According to Polybius, decadent lifestyles that prioritized money and pleasure over marriage and child-rearing &mdash; in addition to the widespread practice of infanticide &mdash; contributed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.perseus.tufts.edu\/hopper\/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.01.0234:book=37:chapter=9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">depopulation<\/a> and the collapse of Greek civilization.<\/p>\n<p>A similar fate in our time will not be circumvented through public policy, but only through a revival of pro-natal social norms and a culture that celebrates and cherishes life.<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Aidan Grogan is a history Ph.D. student at Liberty University, a contributor with Young Voices, and the donor communications manager at the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER). His work has appeared in The Daily Wire, The American Spectator, and AIER&rsquo;s The Daily Economy. Follow him on X @AidanGrogan.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hungary&#8217;s fertility rate hit a record low in 2024 despite efforts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3664,"featured_media":2399588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/strollers.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[49919,34488,49918,49917,36754],"class_list":["post-2399587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-childless-by-choice","tag-family-planning","tag-population-trends","tag-pro-natal-policies","tag-social-policy"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/strollers.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2399587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3664"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2399587"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2399587\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2399592,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2399587\/revisions\/2399592"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2399588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2399587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2399587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2399587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}