Alijanzadeh Mehran, Bahrami Nasim, Jafari Elahe, Noori Mohsen, Miri Fatemeh, Joftyar Mahsa, Griffiths Mark D, Alimoradi Zainab
Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Research Institute for Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases, Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Qazvin, Iran.
International Gaming Research Unit, Psychology Department, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK.
Heliyon. 2023 May 13;9(5):e16162. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16162. eCollection 2023 May.
Having a child is important event for families worldwide. Attitudes toward childbearing are influenced by many factors. The aim of the present study was to investigate Iranian women's attitude toward childbearing and its association with generalized trust, social support, marital satisfaction, mental health, and socio-economic characteristics in Qazvin province.
A cross-sectional survey study was conducted between April and July 2022. Using convenience sampling, 347 women with no children or one child in Qazvin province (Iran) participated in the study. Data were collected via the Iranian online platform The survey included a demographic and fertility characteristics questionnaire, Attitudes Toward the Government's Childbearing Incentives Scale (ATGCIS), Attitudes Toward Fertility and Childbearing Scale (ATFCS), ENRICH Marital Satisfaction Scale (ENRICH MSS), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), and Generalized Trust Scale (GTS).
The average age of participants was 35.66 years (SD = 6.89). The score of attitudes toward fertility and childbearing was 84.66 out of 134 (SD = 19.17). The average number of expected children by the couple was 2.36 (SD = 1.35). Multivariable linear regression found a positive and significant relationship between participants' attitudes toward fertility and childbearing (ATFC) and (i) governmental childbearing incentives (β = 0.365, < 0.001, with 1.37 increase in ATFC with each unit increase in this scale) (ii) generalized trust (i.e., individual's expectation of others' trustworthiness), (β = 0.155, < 0.003, with 0.60 increase in ATFC with each unit increase in generalized trust) and (iii) marital satisfaction (β = 0.146, < 0.005, with 0.26 increase in ATFC with each unit increase marital satisfaction). The multivariable linear regression model also showed that attitudes toward fertility and childbearing was the only predictor of couples' expected number of children in the future (β = 0.214, < 0.001, with 0.38 increase in couples' expected number of children with each unit increase in ATFC).
Government incentives were the strongest independent predictor of participants' attitudes toward childbearing which can indirectly influence couples' expected number of children in the future. Consequently, governments may be able to influence couples' childbearing decisions by providing appropriate incentives. Generalized trust and marital satisfaction were other significant predictors of attitudes toward childbearing. Therefore, implementing programs to improve generalized trust, and increasing marital satisfaction might be other influential measures in couples' childbearing decisions.
生育子女对全球家庭来说都是重要事件。生育观念受到多种因素影响。本研究旨在调查伊朗加兹温省女性的生育观念及其与普遍信任、社会支持、婚姻满意度、心理健康和社会经济特征之间的关联。
于2022年4月至7月进行了一项横断面调查研究。采用便利抽样法，伊朗加兹温省347名无子女或仅有一个子女的女性参与了研究。数据通过伊朗在线平台收集。该调查包括一份人口统计学和生育特征问卷、对政府生育激励措施的态度量表（ATGCIS）、对生育和养育子女的态度量表（ATFCS）、婚姻满意度量表（ENRICH MSS）、患者健康问卷（PHQ - 4）、感知社会支持多维量表（MSPSS）和普遍信任量表（GTS）。
参与者的平均年龄为35.66岁（标准差 = 6.89）。对生育和养育子女的态度得分在134分中为84.66分（标准差 = 19.17）。夫妻期望子女的平均数量为2.36个（标准差 = 1.35）。多变量线性回归发现，参与者对生育和养育子女的态度（ATFC）与以下因素之间存在正向且显著的关系：（i）政府生育激励措施（β = 0.365，P < 0.001，该量表每增加一个单位，ATFC增加1.37）；（ii）普遍信任（即个人对他人可信赖程度的期望）（β = 0.155，P < 0.003，普遍信任每增加一个单位，ATFC增加0.60）；以及（iii）婚姻满意度（β = 0.146，P < 0.005，婚姻满意度每增加一个单位，ATFC增加0.26）。多变量线性回归模型还表明，对生育和养育子女的态度是夫妻未来期望子女数量的唯一预测因素（β = 0.214，P < 0.001，ATFC每增加一个单位，夫妻期望子女数量增加0.38）。
政府激励措施是参与者生育观念最强的独立预测因素，可间接影响夫妻未来期望的子女数量。因此，政府或许能够通过提供适当激励措施来影响夫妻的生育决策。普遍信任和婚姻满意度也是生育观念的其他重要预测因素。所以，实施提高普遍信任的项目以及提升婚姻满意度可能是影响夫妻生育决策的其他有效措施。
