They all wanted one but who did get one: The theory of planned behaviour and the realisation of fertility intentions

We investigate realization of fertility intentions using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as our framework. We focus on the time-frame of people’s fertility intentions and ask whether a different time-frame of the intention leads to different outcomes. Data from the Norwegian GGS 2007 with information from administrative registers on subsequent childbirths provides longitudinal birth histories for 36 months after the survey for the entire original sample. Parents realize their fertility intentions more often then childless people, regardless of the time-frame of their intention. Childless people with a short-term fertility intention have a higher hazard ratio for becoming a parent compared to those with a long-term intention. In line with the Theory of Planned Behavior, attitudes, perceived behavioral control and subjective norms affect on the time-frame of fertility intentions, but not the realization of the fertility intentions.