Child-bearing desires and sterilization among United States women: patterns by income and AFDC recipiency.

The research aim was to examine the rates of female sterilization among 5216 US women aged 15-44 years with at least one biological child. Four groups of women are analyzed (702 Aid for Dependent Children [AFDC] mothers 856 poor non-AFDC mothers 2379 mid-income non-AFDC mothers and 1270 high-income non-AFDC mothers. Poor non-AFDC mothers and AFDC mothers have almost identical numbers of children and over 0.5 children more than mid- and high-income mothers. The average AFDC mother is fairly similar to non-AFDC mothers of all income levels in childbearing behavior goals and ideals. AFDC mothers have higher rates of unwanted childbearing. Many women at all income levels have or intend to have fewer children than the ideal. AFDC mothers have the widest range of ideals. AFDC mothers desire 3.0 children and non-AFDC mothers desire 2.7 children. 29% of AFDC mothers and 31% of non-AFDC mothers have fewer than their ideal number of children. Unwanted fertility varied by income group. About 30% of the total sample were sterilized and 11% had partners with vasectomies. Over 66% desired no more children of whom 46% were sterile and 14% had vasectomized partners. About 33% of AFDC mothers had tubal ligations 1% had vasectomized partners and 4% were involuntarily sterile. The tubal ligation rates were 31% for poor non-AFDC mothers 29% for mid-income mothers and 24% for high-income mothers. About 3% 13% and 14% respectively among income groups had vasectomized partners. Sterilization rates were more common among AFDC unmarried AFDC and poor women at higher parities. In the full bivariate model never married and divorced women were less likely to be sterile than married women and AFDC mothers. Women of lower socioeconomic status were more likely to be sterilized. The odds of female sterilization were higher in the binomial than in the multinomial regressions. Vasectomy was uncommon among African-American Hispanic other ethnic poor AFDC and unmarried mothers. Being Catholic or Jewish affected female sterilization but not vasectomy rates.