Correlates of reproductive behaviour: the case of Afghan refugees in Iran

Sajede Vaezzade
Ali Asghar Moghaddas, Shiraz University

This study intends to examine the most important effective factors on reproductive behavior of Afghan refugee women in Iran. 503 women 15 to 49 years of age sampled to be asked about their some of the demographic and socio-cultural characteristics. Searching to explain the high fertility regime of refugee society up to now in contrary to the host society's fertility decline in recent decade, we found several factors which have the key roles. These are abortion, education, age at marriage, age differential of spouses, desired number of children, and son preference. It was found that women who use contraceptives have more children than non- users and women in extended families have fewer children than women in nuclear families. Overall finding of the study indicates that following the fertility trends in the host society as well as changing their features, Afghan families in Iran are about to experience a fertility transition.