Marital fertility control among the Qing nobility: implications for two types of preventive check

Population Studies
W FengCameron D Campbell

Abstract

Demographers, as early as Malthus, have assumed that the preventive checks, delayed marriage and celibacy, were absent in traditional China. In this paper on the Qing (1644-1911) imperial lineage, we demonstrate that, instead, there may have been a different, more 'modern' preventive check: fertility control within marriage. Marital fertility of lineage couples during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries was low to moderate. Such low fertility was the product of three behavioural mechanisms: late starting, early stopping and, most significantly, long spacing. Couples apparently regulated their fertility according to their economic resources and the sex of their surviving children. Moreover, they did so, we suggest, by regulating their coital frequency. Deliberate fertility control, in other words, was already within the 'calculus of conscious choice' for some Chinese well before this century. the speed of contemporary sinitic fertility transitions may accordingly be attributed to the fact that they did not require a change in attitudes, only the diffusion of new incentives and effective technologies.

Citations

Jan 1, 1999·Population and Development Review·J Lee, F Wang
Oct 15, 2005·Personality and Social Psychology Review : an Official Journal of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc·Lesley NewsonPaul Webley
Oct 5, 2010·Population and Development Review·Yong Cai
Sep 8, 2016·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Christopher R von Rueden, Adrian V Jaeggi
Oct 20, 2001·Journal of Family History·D FriedlanderS Segal
Apr 5, 2016·American Sociological Review·Xi SongJames Z Lee
Oct 26, 2018·Population Studies·Daniel J HruschkaAlexandria Drake
Apr 16, 2009·American Journal of Human Biology : the Official Journal of the Human Biology Council·Lesley Newson
Sep 27, 2002·Journal of the Australian Population Association·Z Zhao
Dec 15, 2010·The History of the Family : an International Quarterly·Cameron D Campbell, James Z Lee
Dec 4, 2010·The History of the Family : an International Quarterly·Shuang ChenCameron Campbell
Jul 1, 2017·Annual Review of Sociology·Xi Song, Cameron D Campbell

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Trending Feeds

COVID-19

Coronaviruses encompass a large family of viruses that cause the common cold as well as more serious diseases, such as the ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; formally known as 2019-nCoV). Coronaviruses can spread from animals to humans; symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties; in more severe cases, infection can lead to death. This feed covers recent research on COVID-19.

Blastomycosis

Blastomycosis fungal infections spread through inhaling Blastomyces dermatitidis spores. Discover the latest research on blastomycosis fungal infections here.

Nuclear Pore Complex in ALS/FTD

Alterations in nucleocytoplasmic transport, controlled by the nuclear pore complex, may be involved in the pathomechanism underlying multiple neurodegenerative diseases including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Dementia. Here is the latest research on the nuclear pore complex in ALS and FTD.

Applications of Molecular Barcoding

The concept of molecular barcoding is that each original DNA or RNA molecule is attached to a unique sequence barcode. Sequence reads having different barcodes represent different original molecules, while sequence reads having the same barcode are results of PCR duplication from one original molecule. Discover the latest research on molecular barcoding here.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a disease characterized by unexplained disabling fatigue; the pathology of which is incompletely understood. Discover the latest research on chronic fatigue syndrome here.

Evolution of Pluripotency

Pluripotency refers to the ability of a cell to develop into three primary germ cell layers of the embryo. This feed focuses on the mechanisms that underlie the evolution of pluripotency. Here is the latest research.

Position Effect Variegation

Position Effect Variagation occurs when a gene is inactivated due to its positioning near heterochromatic regions within a chromosome. Discover the latest research on Position Effect Variagation here.

STING Receptor Agonists

Stimulator of IFN genes (STING) are a group of transmembrane proteins that are involved in the induction of type I interferon that is important in the innate immune response. The stimulation of STING has been an active area of research in the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Here is the latest research on STING receptor agonists.

Microbicide

Microbicides are products that can be applied to vaginal or rectal mucosal surfaces with the goal of preventing, or at least significantly reducing, the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. Here is the latest research on microbicides.