Women's Education and Fertility: To Some Differential Aspects of Transformation of Fertility in Slovakia
Abstract
The educational structure of young women in Slovakia is undergoing significant qualitative changes. Its main features include a historically unique inclination to the tertiary degree.
Extending the study period and increasing participation rates in education are closely linked to these changes. At the same time, several important changes in the intensity, timing and nature of reproductive behavior are taking place in Slovakia.
Together, they are part of the overall transition to adulthood. Women's education is generally considered to be one of the most influential predictors of their demographic behavior.
Educational attainment and enrolment are strongly related to fertility tempo and quantum, family size, union formation and partnership choices. However, the influence of these factors is a lesser-known phenomenon in Slovakia.
The main aim of the articleis to point out the differences in realized fertility, differences in the structure of women according to parity, the impact of changes in parity progression ratios on the completed cohort fertility according to women's education. In the second part, we focus on cross-sectional changes that occur after 1989.
We analyze not only the intensity of fertility, but also changes in the timing and concentration of fertility according to the age and education of the woman.