Many European women want more babies than they have, study finds

August 17, 2016

While European birth rates have dropped below the replacement level, the vast majority of women in Europe believe that the ideal family should include at least two children, a Pew Research study has found.

Among the respondents who answered a question about ideal family size, 57% said that two children would be ideal, and 30% chose a higher number. 

The Pew survey found that among European women near the end of their normal reproductive years, about one-third said that they had fewer children than the ideal number of children, while less than 10% said that they had more children than the ideal number.

 

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Further information:

• Birth rates lag in Europe and the U.S., but the desire for kids does not (Pew)