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Historically, children generated profit. These days, in developed countries, children are expensive. They cost money and time (e.g., years that you would otherw
by freyir 8y ago
Historically, children generated profit. These days, in developed countries, children are expensive. They cost money and time (e.g., years that you would otherwise spend going to school, building a career).
- gowld 8y agoHistorically, parents were far less productive than we are now. People now just enjoy more material things than historically.
- dagw 8y agoThese days, in developed countries, children are expensive. Sure, but they're far cheaper in both Sweden and Finland than in the US, yet people are still having fewer children there, so it can't simply be a cost issue.
- freyir 8y agoThe monetary cost of a Swedish child might be lower (though to some extent, the cost is just distributed across the population in the form of taxes), but the opportunity cost is not. Scandinavian countries have high rates of post-secondary education, which delays parenthood, and even with progressive workforce policies, having children can slow career advancement [1]. [1] https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2004/sep/22/books.familyandrelationships https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2004/sep/22/books.famil...