Stalls in the fertility decline in Costa Rica, Korea, and Sri Lanka

This study seeks to answer questions regarding stalls in the decline of fertility in three countries and the reasons for such stalls. In the three countries studied, the total fertility rate began with a sustained rapid decline during the l960s, but stalled around 1975. The explanations of the stalls are partial, and they differ from one country to the next. In Costa Rica, marital fertility and contraceptive use levelled off, apparently as a result of a convergence between desired and actual fertility and a weakening of the family planning program. In Korea, where two stalls occurred, the first one saw an increase in marriage among women 30-49 years old, and in marital fertility of those under age 30 which offset declines in marriage among women 15-29 years old and in the marital fertility of women age 30-49. During the second stall, the marital fertility of women 25-29 years old increased a bit while among wives 30-34 years old, fertility continued to fall, but at a slower rate than earlier. The explanation for the fertility stall during the late l970s in Sri Lanka is limited. There was a large increase in contraceptive use between 1975 and 1982. At least some of the fertility-depressing effect of this increase presumably was offset by an increase in marriage.