Influence of perceived stress on fertility intention among women of childbearing age without children: multiple mediating effect of anxiety, family communication and subjective well-being

In recent years, there has been a significant decrease in the desire to have children among Chinese women of childbearing age, particularly for the first child. This trend has sparked a growing interest in understanding the underlying factors. Although perceived stress has been speculated as an important factor in decreasing fertility intention, the precise mechanism is unclear. The current study, therefore, aims to investigate the psychological mechanisms linking perceived stress to fertility intentions among women of childbearing age without children, a topic of significant relevance and importance.

Data were sourced from Chinese residents' psychology and behavior investigation (PBICR-2022). A multistage random sampling method was applied to recruit eligible participants. The Mplus8.3 software constructed a chain path model among the variables.

The median fertility intention was 30(3–60) on a scale of 0 to 100. The mediation analysis revealed a significant negative influence of perceived stress on fertility intention (β = − 0.076, P < 0.001). Additionally, a more intricate pattern of chain-mediating effect was observed involving perceived stress, anxiety (β = 0.037, P < 0.05), family communication (β = 0.106, P < 0.001), subjective well-being (β = 0.088, P < 0.001) and fertility intention.

Perceived stress not only directly suppressed fertility intention but also indirectly affected it through anxiety, family communication, and subjective well-being. Effective family communication and favorable subjective well-being emerged as factors that could augment fertility intentions among women of childbearing age without children.