The value of children among Ibo households in Nigeria : a study of Arochukwu Division and urban Umuahia in Imo State

Abstract

This study seeks to identify and measure the various economic and non-economic values which Ibo parents attach to childbearing. The phrase "Value of Children" as used in the study refers to the social and material benefits and costs of children. The main focus is, thus, to show the extent to which parental family size goals are affected by the balance between these countervailing forces (benefits and costs of children). The interpretation of these aspects will draw largely upon our knowledge of the socio-economic and cultural organization of life among the Ibos. The stress on the socio-economic and cultural background is based on the reasoning that the strength of family symbiosis and the extent to which the family constitutes an important social and economic unit are important determinants of the relative costs and returns of children to the nuclear family. These, in combination, equally affect the attitudes of parents towards family size as well as their actual fertility. Building on this introductory. Chapter, Chapter 2 examines the microeconomic theories of fertility decision, the theoretical frameworks that have attempted to identify the various motivations for childbearing, and the methodologies adopted to date to measure the net material value of children. In Chapter 3, the social, economic and cultural background of the Ibos is presented, whilst Chapter A deals with the survey methodology of the present study. The socio-economic, characteristics of both urban and rural respondents are analyzed in Chapter 5. Obligations from both the conjugal and extended family perspectives. It also deals with the achievement orientation of respondents (what they would consider best for themselves and their children in life). Chapter 7 analyzes the demographic characteristics of respondents with emphasis on fertility patterns and differentials, whilst Chapter 8 examines the attitudes and orientation of respondents towards childbearing and family size. Chapter 9 focuses on the various (economic and non-economic) motivations for childbearing among respondents, and the problems of interpreting ambivalent responses to survey questions (especially those regarding tho advantages and disadvantages of having many or few children). Chapter 10, examines the economic value of children (costs and returns) as perceived by the respondents. It analyzes the responses to questions nn the activities performed by various categories of children, the age at which children earn their keep and the balance between costs and returns on various categories of children. The Chapter ends with some estimates of the net value of children in money terms. In Chapter 11, the concluding chapter, an attempt is made to summarize the findings and to consider their implication for policy designed to affect fertility.