The Trade-Offs between Income, Leisure, and Childbearing: Experimental Evidence from Multiple Countries

Arnstein Aassve, Bocconi University
Alicia Adsera , Princeton University
Letizia Mencarini, Bocconi University
Chen Peng, Bocconi University
Alonso Roman Amarales, Bocconi University
Manuela Stranges, University of Calabria

We field a seven-country survey of respondents aged 20–49 to examine how adults value income and time trade-offs when deciding whether to have a child. The survey presents respondents with hypothetical couples considering either a first or a second birth; attributes include the woman’s age, household income, the woman’s share of that income, as well as expected changes in financial circumstances and free time after birth. Respondents evaluate these profiles, forcing trade-offs across domains. The design yields the relative importance of each attribute and how it varies across countries and by respondent gender. We test the extent the motherhood penalty matters for childbearing preferences, the salience of income for first versus second births, and how effects vary with the woman’s age. Results should illuminate which factors most strongly shape childbearing decisions and inform policymakers interested in income transfers and regulating time constraints.

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 Presented in Session 77. Flash Session Fertility, Economic Conditions and Inequality