First, economic pressure.
Research shows that this is the first time to link economics with reducing fertility.
Although nearly ten years have passed since the financial crisis in 2008, economic insecurity may persist, which leads young people who want to be parents to think twice before giving birth.
Others believe that the pressure of housing prices and survival in first-tier cities has delayed the birth of children. These economic pressures make millennials think that the cost of raising children is too high. In order not to affect their living standards, they choose to postpone or even give up having children.
Economic pressure is not only on young people at home, but also in other countries.
An article in The New York Times interviewed a 32-year-old woman who wanted to wait until her career reached a certain stage before having another child. "Once I have achieved a certain degree of success," she said, "I will start thinking about starting a family."
Whatever the reason, millennials' decision to postpone or give up having children will have a chain reaction on the lives of the older generation.
Coupled with the increasing pressure on housing prices and the increasing pressure on survival, their basic life cannot be guaranteed, let alone having children with their families. More importantly, the cost of raising children is also high now. Unlike children in the past, everything will be fine as long as they are guaranteed to eat and drink. Nowadays, children have many extracurricular tutoring classes such as early childhood classes and talent classes, and the cost has greatly increased.
In first-tier cities, both school districts and children's difficulty in enrolling in school are bothering all parents. These problems also make young people decide to solve these troubles fundamentally, so they simply give up having children.
Second, life is affected.
Raising a child requires parents to pay huge financial and material resources and bear certain mental pressure. They don't grow up suddenly with a "whew", but they need 300% efforts and energy from their parents to cultivate them.
Especially for the mother, from the beginning of pregnancy, her life is almost only children. Before having children, she can go shopping with friends in her free time, but after having children, she will completely "destroy" all social activities and occupy all your private time.
Therefore, young people nowadays are more willing to keep a pet as their emotional sustenance when they feel lonely.
Raising children is different from keeping pets. After deciding to give birth to them, it means that young parents must grow up quickly and bear the pressure for at least decades to come. Before preparing for all this, young people are more willing to put this energy into their own lives.
Of course, I believe that with the reduction of the cost of parenting, there will be young people who feel the joy of parenting and are willing to become qualified parents.