Determinants of Fertility Intentions and Realized Family Sizes among Women in Murang’a County, Kenya: A Comparative Cohort Study

John Kinyua, Mount Kenya University

Previous research has already established that intended family size is not a static but rather dynamic concept. It has also been shown that there is always a difference between intended and actual family size. In Africa, however no longitudinal study has been conducted to establish dynamic nature of intended and actual family sizes across a woman’s fertility life span. This research work aims to use life span theory of control and non-overlapping sample survey data spanning a whole cohort fertility life span to establish how intended family sizes and actual family sizes change over women’s fertility lifespan in Kenya. More specifically the research will establish the salient factors that determine the reported intended family sizes and realized family sizes across a woman’s fertility life span. Expected findings are that level of education, age, and number of children already born affects the reported family size intentions while knowledge and access to contraceptives, education level, and age at having a stable partner, gender preference affect actual family size.

Keywords: Fertility, Longitudinal studies , Family Planning and Contraception

See extended abstract.