The iPhone explains 33–52% of fertility decline among women aged 15–44
4 hours ago
- #Technology Effects
- #Fertility Decline
- #Smartphone Impact
- The U.S. general fertility rate dropped by 22% from 2007, unexplained by typical economic or social factors.
- Study uses AT&T's exclusive iPhone sales (2007-2011) as a natural experiment to assess smartphone impact.
- Access to the iPhone reduced births by 4.5–8.0% for ages 15–19 and 3.2–6.6% for ages 20–24.
- Smaller but significant declines observed in older cohorts, with placebo tests on other carriers showing no effect.
- iPhone diffusion deepened birth declines in women under 30 and suppressed increases in older women.
- iPhone adoption explains 33–52% of the fertility rate decline among women aged 15–44.
- Survey data suggests iPhones reduced in-person interactions and sexual frequency while increasing pornography use.