Go Forth and Multiply

“To deny the gift of life to a child who would have made your life better is a tragic missed opportunity.” – Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids

The Bible is rife with stories of childless women, like Sarah, the wife of Abraham, or Elizabeth, the wife of Zechariah, ashamed of their unwelcome barrenness, all while the foundation of the creation mandate given to Adam and Eve was to fill the earth.  Childbearing and motherhood were the primary roles for women of the age, and children were the ultimate gift from God.  To be childless was a curse; a reason to be pitied and even ostracized.  Yet, today, children are increasingly viewed as more of a burden than a blessing. 

Catholics, Mormons, and Muslims have historically had the largest families, and perhaps, as a result, are most likely to get and stay married.  Many churches have, in fact, scorned abortion and sometimes even contraceptives.  Mother Teresa famously refused to adopt children to couples using birth control, believing the number of children should be left to God. Children were a source of prestige and a sign of success in many cultures and times. 

Today, however, pets outnumber children 4 to 1.  By 2022, 70 percent of households had a pet, while only 40 percent had children under the age of 18. 

In Bryan Caplan’s 2012 book, “Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids”, Caplan advocates for a return to larger families.  While helicopter parenting replaced the relaxed childrearing of the past, Caplan believes that less micromanaging will lead to more enjoyment for parents, opening a path to more children.  Overparenting has overburdened parents to the point of having fewer children.     

Large families are disappearing for many reasons.  In the 1950s, couples had 4 children on average.  Today, it is less than 2.  Positive improvements like falling child mortality, higher rates of education, a variety of birth control options, and increases in wealth have all contributed to fewer children, while cultural changes in divorce, out-of-wedlock children, delayed marriage, cohabitation, and abortion have negatively affected the size of families.  When couples marry later, they have less time for a big family as fertility drops significantly at age 35, when half of women have trouble conceiving.  Divorce, in turn, often cuts family creation short.  A decline in church attendance, women in the workforce, and the rising cost of raising children make it virtually impossible for most couples to have the families they desire. Today, in fact, one-quarter of American 40-year-olds have never even been married, a record high. 

In economics, marginal utility is the added cost of each additional unit.  In a family, how much satisfaction does each additional child bring?  The lower the added cost, the more likely the choice will be to add another.  While the first child is the most life-altering and has the biggest impact on the family, each additional baby provides less change. 

A more modern dilemma is the increasing split in fertility between red and blue states.  By self-sorting, like-minded individuals are moving to neighborhoods and states that best reflect their values.  Red states tend to be more church-going, with suburban rural couples having larger families.  Urban elites, on the other hand, are increasingly opting for small families or no children at all.    

To increase a nation’s prospects for larger families, a government focused on the traditional family and devoted to policies that result in economic growth, fewer abortions, and less divorce is key.  Families are the foundation of a thriving society, with marriages providing the necessary financial stability.  By focusing on lower taxes, families can keep more of their own money and accumulate the wealth necessary to create and support larger families.  Culturally, marriage over cohabitation and native babies over immigration will help solve the baby problem.  Make couples not only want to have babies again but also increase the number of desired children. 

Until then, low replacement rates will continue to threaten societies, including entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, along with the much-needed workers necessary to support them.  When polled, most parents agree that they would have children all over again, including those who brought unplanned pregnancies to fulfillment.  Over two-thirds of single women, on the other hand, regret having no kids at all.

Natalists call for more babies, believing that families are not only good for society, but also provide a more balanced life.  With children safer today than ever before, and with modern conveniences making child-rearing easier, the case for families has never been better.   A return to marriage, religion, and community is the biggest factor in increased family formation.  Perhaps most importantly, however, families provide continuity of values and mores from one generation to the next.

The Hand That Rocks the Cradle is the Hand That Rules the World is an ode to motherhood written by William Ross Wallace in 1865 about the women who raise the children that will one day influence the world.  No doubt, groups that breed the most will own the future.