What impact does the COVID-19 pandemic have on fertility decisions? An empirical study in Bangladesh

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant influence on people’s life, affecting social and economic conditions, population dynamics, politics, and cultural activities. This study investigates how COVID-19 affects married people’s fertility preferences. It also analyzes the preferences of married persons in Bangladesh with and without COVID-19. The study hypothesizes that persons afflicted with the pandemic choose to have more children than uninfected ones. A survey questionnaire and in-depth interview questions were used to gather pertinent data via snowball sampling from 200 infected and uninfected individuals residing in Sylhet City Corporation, Bangladesh, who were between the ages of 15 and 50. The study employed a mixed method strategy, including quantitative analysis (binary logistic regression), ANOVA testing, Chi-Square testing, and thematic analysis of qualitative data to examine the association between COVID-19 and fertility decisions. The results of the study show that the pandemic significantly affects people’s reproductive preferences, in particular their desire to have or not to have children in the future. In addition, compared with people who are not infected with COVID-19, people who have been infected are more likely to want to have children in the future. The study also shows that people - married couples in particular - may think twice before choosing to have children if they suffer the adverse consequences of an unforeseen shock such as a pandemic in the future. By examining the socioeconomic and cultural context of Bangladesh, this study explores how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced fertility preferences. By addressing demographic shifts during and after the pandemic, it offers important insights for researchers, policymakers, and healthcare professionals. Additionally, this study will advance knowledge of how pandemics alter reproductive desires globally and make results available for future cross-regional comparisons.