Handwerker W P
Program in Anthropology, Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA 95521.
Soc Sci Med. 1992 Nov;35(10):1245-57. doi: 10.1016/0277-9536(92)90178-s.
Nearly all West Indian islands initiated marked fertility declines sometime between 1960 and 1970. Family planning programs have not played an important role in these declines. Neither have other variables that conventional social theory tells us should promote reduced family sizes, like education and rising standards of living. The historical experience of Barbados and Antigua, which reached replacement-level fertility in the 1980s, suggests that West Indian fertility declines reflect structural changes in national economies that created job opportunities for women. Family planning programs need to be evaluated with reference to the distinctive health and human rights goals other than fertility transition that they can effectively reach.
几乎所有西印度群岛在1960年至1970年期间的某个时候都开始出现显著的生育率下降。计划生育项目在这些下降过程中并未发挥重要作用。传统社会理论告诉我们应该会促进家庭规模缩小的其他变量，如教育和生活水平的提高，也没有起到作用。巴巴多斯和安提瓜在20世纪80年代达到了更替水平的生育率，它们的历史经验表明，西印度群岛的生育率下降反映了国民经济的结构性变化，这些变化为女性创造了就业机会。计划生育项目需要参照其能够有效实现的除生育转变之外的独特健康和人权目标来进行评估。
