Number of Children and Birth Intervals in Relation to Parental Socio-Demographic Characteristics for the Children Born to Mothers of Foreign Nationality

• Main Authors: Wan-hsun Chen, 陳宛旬
• Other Authors: Shan-tair Wang
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2007
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/63806743310250938171

碩士 === 國立成功大學 === 公共衛生研究所 === 95 === Background：One out of every five married couples in 2006 had a foreign spouse with far more female than male spouses. Most of them are from Southeast Asia and mainland China. In the same period of time (1998-2005), the percentage of children born to mothers of foreign nationality among all newborns increased from 5.1% in 1998 to 12.9% in 2005, more than doubling. The effects of the increased number of children born to mothers of foreign nationality on demographical composition will force the government to consider the potential impacts brought on by this trend on its demographical, educational and economic policies. The fertility history of these foreign female spouses is important information for assessing the impacts. Purpose：This study aims to understand the birth intervals for children born to mothers of southeast Asia and mainland China and delineate the effects of parental socio-demographic characteristics. Materials and method：The secondary data were obtained from a survey of foreign spouses in 2003 conducted by the Ministry of Interior Affairs. A subsample including only the female spouses from southeast Asia and mainland China was extracted from the data bank. After exclusion of the cases with missing marriage dates, coding errors, non-singleton births, and pre-marital pregnancies and childbirths, we had 59742 and 68010 mothers from southeast Asia and China respectively for the data analysis. A Cox Regression model for recurrent event data was used for the analysis of maternal and paternal socio-demographic characteristics in relation to birth intervals. The risks of shorter birth intervals were expressed as hazard ratios [HR]. When HR is larger than 1, the birth interval decreases. When HR is smaller than 1, the birth interval increases. Results：The foreign born mothers from southeast Asia has shorter birth intervals than those from mainland China. The spacing of the first, second, and third births less than 16 months was 46% vs. 17%、19% vs. 11%、4% vs. 2% , respectively. Those foreign born mothers who met their Taiwanese husbands through the introduction of matchmaker agencies or the relatives of their husbands had shorter birth intervals （HR[95% CI]：1.23 [1.20-1.27]and 1.25[1.21-1.29] respectively、1.20[1.16-1.23] and 1.24[1.21-1.28] respectively）. Older age at time of marriage, longer years of marriage, boys in previous births and the second marriage were, however, associated with longer birth intervals （HR[95% CI]：0.96[0.95-0.96] vs. 0.93[0.92-0.93]、0.76[0.74-0.78] vs. 0.74[0.71-0.76]、2.05[1.85-2.28] vs. 6.48[5.88-7.15]）. Taiwanese husbands mostly had junior or senior high school education, 92% for the southeast Asia group and 83% for the China group. The firstborns of these fathers had shorter birth intervals than those of the illiterate ones. The reason was possibly because of eagerness to have a child to carry the family name. The spacing of the secondborns was longer and was not affected by the fathers’ educational levels. It could be due to their lower income levels and therefore the economic and childrearing burden must be taken into account. Seventy-two percent of the mothers from southeast Asia had junior high or less educations. The foreign born mothers’ education levels did not show significant effects on birth intervals. It could be that the childbearing decision rests on their husbands and families. On the other hand, the association was present among the firstborns of the mothers from mainland China who had 61% with junior high or less education. Government policy and marriage not for childbearing were two possible reasons. Discussions & Conclusions：Forty-six percent of the firstborns of the mothers from southeast Asia had extreme short birth intervals less than 16 months and seventy-six percent had birth intervals less than or equal to 28 months. As compared with those foreign born mothers from mainland China, they had shorter birth intervals. Due to language and cultural mal-adjustment problems, it could cause both physical and psychological adverse effects. We recommend early family planning interventions for the foreign born mothers from southeast Asia. Regardless of the southeast Asia or China group, the Taiwanese husbands who had elementary or high school education and held a job had their firstborns at the earlier periods after marriage. They shall be included in the interventions. The birth intervals for the secondborns or beyond were longer among those mothers from southeast Asia of illiteracy. Similar findings were found among those mothers from China for the thirdborns but not for the secondborns. These mothers with lower socioeconomic levels and their families might be lack of adequate family planning and shall be targeted as high risk groups.