Research shows that only a quarter of millennials who say they want children are actively trying to get pregnant.
The rising costs of housing and child care are among the top reasons why fewer young adults are trying to start a family.
The analysis by the UCL Center for Longitudinal Studies in London looked at more than 7,000 32-year-olds.
Just over half of them have already become parents, while half of children without children say they definitely want to start a family in the future.
But only one in four of those who said they wanted to become parents or have more offspring said they were currently trying to do so. More than a quarter of them indicate that this is due to financial reasons.
Only a quarter of millennials who say they want children are actively trying to get pregnant (stock image)
The analysis from the UCL Center for Longitudinal Studies in London looked at more than 7,000 32-year-olds (stock image)
Lead author Dr Alina Pelikh said the findings suggest that ‘financial and employment constraints are seen by many as major challenges and important reasons to delay parenthood’.
Respondents could choose multiple reasons and most (46 percent) said not feeling ready was the reason they hadn’t tried to get pregnant yet. Just under a quarter (24 percent) say this is due to not having a suitable partner and just over a fifth (22 percent) say this is due to themselves or their partner’s work or studies. Only 3 percent cited environmental concerns.
Women were more likely than men to report financial concerns and their own work or studies as reasons for not currently becoming pregnant.
The article states: ‘These findings highlight the important role that finances and employment play in deciding when to start trying for a (different) child.
‘The slightly higher prevalence of these concerns among women may reflect existing evidence that women’s careers often suffer setbacks in income and career advancement after childbirth.’
In total, about a quarter of the more than 7,000 respondents said they were not sure they would have more children or become parents for the first time.
Women were more likely than men to report financial concerns and their own work or studies as reasons for not currently becoming pregnant (stock image)
The paper said this could indicate “a smaller average family size and a higher proportion of individuals without children in this cohort compared to older generations.”
Dr. Pelikh said the findings “highlight the challenges this generation faces as they consider their pregnancy plans in their early 30s.”
She added: ‘While people without children may have to deal with the complexities of finding a partner and building a career before parenthood, parents struggle with the reality of balancing existing family and financial responsibilities with the prospect on having more children.
‘While parents will obviously have many reasons for deciding on the timing and spacing of their children, it is likely that current pressures on the cost of living, with rising expenditure on housing and childcare, are also shaping the environment in which this group has fertility generates. decisions.’