The Hull Family Survey

Abstract

This paper describes the main findings of the first stage in a planned longitudinal study of marriage and family planning amongstarepresentative sample of recently married couples in a northern city. The long-term aim of the research is to evaluate, by means of interivews repeated at successive 5-year intervals in the lives of these couples, the relationship between intended and achieved family size and to assess the factors associated with relative success and failure. The initial series of interviews provides much new information on patterns of mate selection, marriage and family planning intentions; it also represents the only recent survey of contraceptive behaviour during the first year of marriage. The major determinants of family-building behaviour are assessed and, amongst these, religion is found to be the most significant. Its effects are, however, mitigated by considerable marrying out amongst Catholics. The notion of the married couple as a rational decision-making unit in matters of family planning is supported by this survey and there is a rela tionship between desired family size and the efficacy of contraceptive usage. Two points of major methodological interest in fertility analysis are dis cussed.