Asia-Pacific Population Journal - Volume 3, Issue 2, 1988

Women are not accorded equal status with men in practically all countries of the world. Compared with men, women have very limited opportunities in most spheres of economic and social activities (Sadik, 1986; Curtin, 1982). However, there is a close association between various aspects of women’s status or position in society and demographic patterns of fertility, mortality and migration. This association is shown to be more pronounced with regard to fertility and the social processes associated with it (United Nations, 1975).

Among the countries of Asia, the Republic of Korea presents an outstanding example of rapid and sustained fertility decline. Within the short span of a quarter century, fertility in the Republic of Korea has changed from a level typical of traditional familistic societies to a level resembling that of the more developed countries. Thus, Korean fertility levels and trends and their estimation continue to be of interest because of their implications to other developing countries currently seeking to achieve fertility reductions.

Fertility behaviour is determined mainly by the characteristics of individuals, but also by social, cultural, community and institutional factors. The primary aim of this article is to investigate the influence of social and economic institutions on fertility and contraception.

Because of the complexity of development planning, demographic factors inevitably enter into the planning process. The integration of those factors is widely recognized as an effective strategy in both development planning and population planning.