While the total fertility rate in most of the world is steady or declining, population growth is rapidly rising in sub-Saharan Africa. The rate of contraceptive uptake remains among the lowest in the world and is in part due to differences in fertility demand as well as cultural and gender norms. DHS data indicates that in many countries men have a higher fertility demand than women. When misaligned preferences occur, women’s lack of bargaining power can make it difficult for them to use family planning services. Recent news from Zimbabwe suggests that, in response to this, some women rely on the covert use of contraception in order to prevent pregnancy, against the wishes of their partner. A 2012 study Nava Ashraf, Erica Field and Jean Lee found confirmed that the use of concealable contraception is also relatively common in Zambia. They found that women offered contraception while alone were 25 percent more likely to take it than were women who were offered it jointly with their husbands highlighting the difference in contraceptive demand between men and women. While offering women alone improved uptake, qualitative work suggests it did not alter the cultural environment surrounding family planning and increased tension within the household; the women who secretly took the contraceptives later reported a decreased feeling of well-being.
The results suggest that involving men in family planning can have mixed effects when fertility preferences within couples are misaligned. Understanding the differences in fertility preferences and the influence of men in family planning may help improve programs. The ongoing BERI project by Ashraf in Zambia applies insights from behavioral economics to study men’s fertility preferences. Ashraf seeks to determine whether providing men with salient and objective information can break down cultural myths about pregnancy, better align men and women’s fertility preferences, and increase contraceptive uptake.
BERI 