This is one of six titles resulting from the Ethnicity and Fertility in Southeast Asia Project that commenced in 1980. Building upon the results of an earlier study, which established that ethnicity was a significant factor underlying fertility differentials among the various ethnic groups in Southeast Asia, the project aimed to explore in greater detail the extent to which ethnicity and ethnic factors such as ethnic attitudes, ethnic identification and cultural practices influenced reproductive behaviour. Instead of utilizing secondary sources, the project relied on primary data collected through the survey technique. In all, twenty ethnic groups from the five ASEAN countries were surveyed in this study which spanned a period of three years.

As discussed in this paper, fertility behaviour is determined by various factors such as ethnicity, education, income and other variables. In Singapore, ethnicity is found to be the most significant factor affecting all the four fertility-related measures, namely, the number of children ever born, desired family size, wife's age at first marriage, and current contraceptive use.

Examines the major demographic variables responsible for the decline in fertility rate and to determine the relative importance of each and to ascertain whether they have operated in similar ways for the main ethnic groups in Singapore.

This is one of six titles resulting from the Ethnicity and Fertility in Southeast Asia Project that commenced in 1980. Building upon the results of an earlier study, which established that ethnicity was a significant factor underlying the fertility differentials among the various ethnic groups in Southeast Asia, the project aimed to explore in greater detail the extent to which ethnicity and ethnic factors such as ethnic attitudes, ethnic identification and cultural practices influenced reproductive behaviour. Instead of utilizing secondary sources, the project relied on primary data collected through the survey technique. In all, twenty ethnic groups from the five ASEAN countries were surveyed in this study which spanned a period of three years.

This book depicts the evolution of Singapore’s family and population landscape in the last half a century, the related public policies, and future challenges. Since the country gained independence in 1965, family and population policies have been integral to her nation-building strategies. The chapters discuss the changes in population compositions, family structures, relations, and values among major ethnic groups. They also discuss policies for vulnerable populations such as female-headed households, cross-cultural families, same-sex partnering, the elderly, and low-income families.