Traditional Gender Values and Adolescent Fertility Expectations in Ethiopia

David P. Lindstrom, Brown University
Dennis Hogan, Brown University
Craig A. Hadley, University of Michigan
Assefa Hailemariam, Addis Ababa University

We examine the influence of traditional gender values, education, family and peer relations, and community context on young people’s family size expectations in a sample of Ethiopian youth. In particular, we test whether the influence of traditional gender values on family size expectations varies by level of education and by the prevalence of traditional gender values among other youth in the community. We use survey data for 2,172 never married adolescents age 13-17 from the Jimma Longitudinal Family Survey of Youth (JLFSY). The JLFSY study area includes a regional city, three outlying towns, and surrounding rural communities in southwestern Ethiopia. Preliminary analyses indicate that the influence of traditional gender values on expected family size is highly conditioned by the level of schooling and the community context. Education reduces the influence of traditional values, whereas living in a community where traditional values are widespread magnifies the influence of individual values.