Reproductive Polarisation in New Zealand

A Dharmalingam, University of Waikato
Ian Pool, University of Waikato
Janet Sceats, Portal Consulting and Associates Ltd.
Sandra Baxendine, University of Waikato

This paper uses New Zealand data to examine an emerging issue in the Western Developed Countries (WDCs), especially the English-speaking ones: the co-variance of low fertility with early childbearing. We have called this Reproductive Polarisation. In WDCs concerns over ageing are coupled with anxieties over declining fertility: sub-replacement fertility, linked in part to delayed parenting and a complex interface between child-bearing and labour force participation. Moreover, the women delaying parenting are often better educated, career-oriented, or are in families dependent on two incomes. Delays in the decision to have children may mean that a minority of women end up involuntarily childless. There is a counterpoint to this that produces reproductive polarisation: the existence of a minority of women who have children at young ages, yet often lack the financial capacity to meet childrearing costs. This paradox has far wider ramifications; it is not simply a matter of a demographic differential but has policy and political implications.