Postponement of Motherhood in Slovakia in Cohort Perspective

Fertility postponement is one of the most important trends in the demographic behavior in Slovakia after collapse of previous political regime. The reproduction model which was primarily characterized by early motherhood began to diminish in late 1960s and with every new generation, it loses further ground. It is manifested in continuous rise in cohort mean age at first birth and a significant intergenerational drop in the cohort fertility rate. The benchmark analysis of cohort fertility has enabled us to analyze in detail the onset of the fertility postponement transition in Slovakia, as well as its dynamics and ultimate extent. We have also been able to identify the differences in the recuperation of the deferred births. Our analysis has confirmed that the earliest onset of fertility postponement can be found in Slovakia among women born in the first half of the 1970s. The formation of a new reproductive model in younger ages culminates in cohorts born in the 1980s. It also appears that the main cause of cohort fertility decline is caused by the low level of recuperation of second and higher births. The first order fertility is the most affected by the postponement process, but most of these deferred births are born in higher ages. Therefore the most important for the future development of fertility in Slovakia will be on how successful will women born in the 1970s and 1980s be in carrying out their deferred second pregnancies.