The community-level effects of women's education on reproductive behavior in rural Ghana

Using survey data collected in rural Ghana during the 1980s, this study examines whether a woman's interest in fertility regulation and contraception is influenced by the education of other women in her community. The study finds that, net of her own characteristics, a woman's interest in limiting fertility and using modern contraception increases with the percent of women with education in her community. The finding suggests that female education has a greater capacity to introduce novel reproductive ideas and behaviors into rural areas of Africa and thereby transform the demographic landscape in the region than is currently believed. Other community characteristics that increase women's interest in regulating fertility and contraceptive use in this setting include access to transportation and proximity to urban areas. However, these are not as powerful as women's education in transforming reproductive behavior.