1. A comparison of Japan and Switzerland
Fertility trends:
A comparison of Japan and Switzerland
Marion Burkimsher
LaboDemo, University of Geneva

4. Similarities between Switzerland and Japan
Wealthy, highly developed, very ‘organised’ societies
Very high life expectancy
Low to very low fertility levels
High rates of childlessness at present time
Low levels of extra-marital childbearing

5. Differences between Switzerland and Japan
Arranged marriage very common in Japan, but falling: 63% in 1955, 7% in Lifetime singleness was rare, 2%
High immigration and foreign population in Switzerland; very low in Japan
Very homogeneous population in Japan; very diverse in Switzerland
Co-residence with parents common in Japan (25% eldest sons in 1998)

8. Japan

9. Japan

10. Japan

11. Japan

18. Rural v. urban (and region)
Primary determinants of marriage and childbearing in Switzerland from census data and longitudinal analysis of Swiss Panel data
Cohort
Religiosity
Rural v. urban (and region)
Level of education (high level = higher chance of childlessness)
If had a sibling (affects childbearing more than marriage)
1, 3 and 4 confirmed in Japanese studies too - Retherford et al, 2001, Hirosima, 1995

19. Trends in attitudes reflect fertility trends in Japan
Increase in proportion never-married is the main cause of fertility fall - why has this happened?
Little change in attitude to religion
Moderate trend towards individualism
Major change in attitude to women’s status
Positive attitude to girls
Enrolment of girls in higher education > boys by end 1980s
In parallel with major change of attitudes to aged parents, whether women should marry, divorce, sexuality, etc.
Atoh, 2001

21. References
Atoh, Makoto Very low fertility in Japan and value change hypotheses. Review of Population and Social Policy, No. 10, 1-21
Hirosima, Kiyoshi and Fusami Mita Prefectural differentials in recent fertility. IPSS publication Jinkomon, Vol 50, no. 4,
Kojima, Hiroshi and Jean-Louis Rallu Fertility in Japan and France. Population: an English selection, 10 (2), pp
Retherford, Robert D., Naohiro Ogawa and Rikiya Matsukura Late marriage and less marriage in Japan. Population and Development Review, 27 (1),