Determinants of Fertility in Albania

One of the major demographic changes during the last decade is the declining of fertility below the level necessary for the replacement of generations which identifies the end of the first demographic transition in the Albanian society. Albania recognizes a rapid and later demographic transition, which is characteristic of developing countries. While we know a lot about the timing of the fertility transition in different regions, we know much less about specific features in different periods. The aim of this paper is to use longitudinal micro-level data for Albanian population to study the relationship between socioeconomic status and fertility. Using the 2012 Albanian Living Standard and Measurement Survey (ALSMS) we analyze fertility behaviour. The results from survival analysis techniques suggest that the reduction of fertility goes in line with economic, social and cultural life of couples and families. In the models proposed in this paper fertility is measured by the number of children ever born for a woman. This variable is easily measurable. A stratified sampling technique was used to collect data from LSMS survey. Regression analysis was used to estimate the relationship between number of children and social-economic variables confirming the findings in other similar studies.