Effect of infant and child mortality on fertility: evidence from Kenya Demographic and health survey, 1989
Abstract
This study had three objectives. The first objective was to find the effect of some selected socio-economic and demographic factors on fertility. The factors were education, residence, husbands occupation, age at attained parity, and elapsed duration
since last birth. The tools of analysis were Chi-Square and Regression analysis.
Second objective was to find the effect of infant and child mortality on subsequent fertility. Multiple classification analysis degree of replacement in Kenya by calculating
additional births to additional deaths. The Kenya Demographic and health survey data carried out in 1989 was used in this study. Tools of analysis employed in this
study were Chi-square analysis, Multiple regression analysis and
Multiple Classification analysis. The sample size utilized in this study was 2651 women. To isolate the effect of infant and child mortality on other factors that affect fertility were to be controlled. Our control variables were thus the selected socio-fertility,
economic and demographic variables. We controlled for this
variables (education, residence, husbands occupation, age at attained
parity,elapsed duration since last birth) through the process of
Multiple Classification Analysis. With the application of both Chi-square and regression analysis, the results showed that all the socio-economic and demographic factors had a significant relationship with fertility.When we controlled for the other factors that affect fertility by use of multiple classification analysis, we found that at each
given parity, women who had suffered child losses went on to have
a higher number of births in order to replace the dead ones. For
example, Women with two child losses had a higher mean number of
children ever born than those with one or no child loss.
It was also found that replacement effect was more effective
in cases of women who ever use contraception than those who do not.
The degree of replacement was also found to be less than complete.
Replacement is said to be complete when a child death induces same
child birth. On the basis of the research findings, it was recommended
that, women should be encouraged to attain higher levels of education, involve themselves in economic activities that would raise their social economic status, improvement in maternal and child health should be emphasized, and non reversible family planning methods be encouraged.
Citation
Masters of Arts Degree in Population StudiesPublisher
University of Nairobi Department of Arts Population Studies
Description
This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Population Studies, University of Nairobi.