Vries, Emiel de (2023) Differences in Fertility Behaviour between Migrants and Natives: the Case of Non-Westerners living in the Netherlands. Bachelor thesis.
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Abstract
In non-Western countries, fertility rates are often higher than in the Netherlands. Therefore, if non-Western individuals migrate to the Netherlands and do not adjust their fertility rate to that of Dutch natives, the Dutch fertility rate will eventually rise. This increase could cause problems in Dutch society, but also solve them. To prevent or solve these potential problems related to fertility, this study aims to investigate whether non-Western migrants living in the Netherlands actually show different fertility behaviour than natives by asking the question: "What is the difference in fertility behaviour between Dutch natives and migrants of non-Western background living in the Netherlands?". This question will be answered and explained through three Poisson Regressions using secondary data from the GGS and the UN. The results show that non-Western migrants living in the Netherlands have significantly more children compared to Dutch natives, meaning that there is a difference in fertility behaviour between these groups. To some extent, this difference can be explained by the lower education levels of migrants compared to natives. Furthermore, the non-Western migrants show similar fertility behaviours as the stayers in their home countries, which means that Kulu's (2005) socialisation theory can be applied to this case study. This socialisation of the migrants from their home countries further explains the difference in fertility behaviour between non-Western migrants and Dutch natives. Finally, it was found that for non-Western migrants both income and education level moderate the relationship between migration background and fertility behaviour, while for natives only education level moderates this relationship. Therefore, it will be concluded that there is a difference in fertility behaviour between non-Western migrants and Dutch natives caused by migrants' lower education levels and socialisation from their home countries, and that this difference in fertility behaviour is influenced mainly by education levels but also by income. Since this difference in fertility behaviour will eventually increase the overall Dutch fertility rate, this may cause problems but also solve problems for Dutch society. Therefore, if this causes problems, it is recommended to the Dutch government to come up with policies that slow down or prevent the rise in fertility by increasing the education level of non-Western migrants. Moreover, if the rise in fertility solves problems, the government is recommended to come up with policies that stimulate non-Western migrants to keep their fertility stable or even increase it.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Bachelor) |
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| Degree programme: | Human Geography and Planning |
| Supervisor: | Remund, A.P.P. |
| Date Deposited: | 11 Jul 2023 12:40 |
| Last Modified: | 11 Jul 2023 12:40 |
| URI: | https://frw.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/4236 |
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