NBER Study Ties Smartphones to 33%-52% of US Fertility Drop Since 2007
Updated
Updated · Creative Bloq · Jun 16
NBER Study Ties Smartphones to 33%-52% of US Fertility Drop Since 2007
3 articles · Updated · Creative Bloq · Jun 16
Summary
A new NBER study says smartphone diffusion may explain 33%-52% of the 22% decline in US fertility rates since 2007 among women aged 15-44.
The paper argues smartphones reduced in-person interaction, increased pornography use and cut sexual frequency, weakening a decline not readily explained by economic conditions, contraception, housing or childcare costs.
Counties with smartphone penetration above 90% saw much steeper fertility declines than counties below 10%, giving the study a geographic pattern consistent with its thesis.
Teenagers showed the sharpest drop, with fertility among 15- to 19-year-olds down 26%, suggesting the effect was strongest in younger groups.
The findings add a new explanation to a long-running debate over why US births have fallen persistently since the iPhone era began.