Socioreligious factors in fertility decline

A careful correlation of the influences of society and religion on family planning practices, with particular emphasis on the role of the Roman Catholic Church. Working with a wide array of variables --including ethnicity, female labor force participation, age at marriage and socio-economic status -- the authors present a comprehensive analysis of changing attitudes and behavior with respect to various aspects of family planning and birth control. They conclude with a discussion of implications for future trends in fertility in the United States based on their use of Rhode Island as a case study.