Motivation models for childbirth

Socio-economic changes in society have transformed the reproductive behaviour of the population. However, not only different forms of families are represented in society, but also different scenarios of reproductive behavior realization: from childcare to large parenthood. The subject of research interest in this work was the motivation of individuals to have children. The method of research was an analysis of theoretical sources, empirical research, narrative interview (50 interviews in total). In this work, an attempt was made to describe reproductive behavior not through the dichotomies of the indicators “reproductive needs -reproductive behavior”, “average desirable -average expected number of children”, but by identifying a leading motive for the birth of children. Potential parents, influenced not only by objective circumstances but also by subjective perceptions of future parenthood, decide on the birth of their first or subsequent children. The authors not only identify the leading motives for the birth of children, but also identify models of motivation in which specific reproductive behavior is implemented, such as labor, marriage-status, long-term, investment, integrative models.