More Than One-Third of Teenagers Don’t Want Children in the Future, Study Finds

More than one-third (36 percent) of 16- to 18-year-olds say they do not want children in the future, citing concerns including climate change and global instability, according to a survey. Researchers from University College London (UCL) conducted an online survey of 931 year 12 and 13 pupils across 20 schools in England between May 10, 2021, and July 29, 2022, on matters relating to parental intentions and reproductive education. UCL’s study published in the journal Human Fertility on Monday found that of the 931 young people surveyed, 338 said they did not want to have children. Researchers identified five themes when respondents asked why they did not want to reproduce: global instability; negative associations with pregnancy and childbirth; being apprehensive over the prospect of parenthood; alternative routes to parenthood, namely adoption; and the opinion that children are an inconvenience....