On Mon, 15 Aug 2005, Carrol Cox wrote:
>
> Speculation -- though there may be some research and analysis backing
> this: The birth rate is in inverse ratio to the status of women. The
> more social and/or individual power women have, the fewer babies.
> Perhaps also a correlation (inverse) with leisure time.
>
> Carrol
Interesting exception to this trend: relatively low levels of gender inequality in hunting and gathering tribes with high birth rates, compared to industrial societies. Lots of babies and gender inequality are not inevitably linked, although they often are in developing regions.
Miles