Yes this seems to be the story today, both in the west and in some developing countries (e.g. India). But this was not the historical pattern. Firstly, it's m

Yes this seems to be the story today, both in the west and in some developing countries (e.g. India). But this was not the historical pattern. Firstly, it's my understanding that richer families started having fewer kids than poor ones in Victorian times -- about a century too early to be explained by women getting MBAs (or taking the pill). Secondly, for poorer people before this, I think the main mechanism (in the west) was delayed marriage. (Not famine or disease etc.) Saving up enough money to decently start a household took time, and the community's definition of "decently" set the equilibrium population. See for instance https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_European_marriage_pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_European_marriage_patt... (and Laslett book above).