Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on women's fertility intentions

Min Zhao, an exchange PhD student at ICRH Belgium, presented her research on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on women's fertility intentions with an e-poster at the Congress of the European Society of Contraception and Reproductive Health (25-28 May).

This study, led by Prof. Wei-Hong Zhang, is part of the I-SHARE project.
The research was based on 26 countries' data collected within one year of the pandemic. The main findings indicate that pandemic-induced isolation/quarantine and deteriorating mental health postponed fertility intentions, and that living with a steady partner accelerated fertility intentions among reproductive-aged women. Based on these findings, the corresponding recommendations for future research and policy makers are provided in this study.