Employment Status and Contraceptive Choices of Women With Young Children in Turkey

Abstract

The childcare burden is one of the main reasons behind the lower employment rate of women in Turkey, and the opportunity cost of childbearing is high for employed women (especially for those in higher-paid jobs). Since using an effective birth control method allows women to control the timing of reproduction, there may be differences in contraception behavior between employed women and women not working for pay. This study analyzes the impact of employment status of women with young children on their contraception behavior using data from the 2013 Turkey Demographic and Health Survey (TDHS). Results show that employed women, including family workers, are more likely to choose a modern method over a traditional one, particularly those working as government employees. Results also indicate that the likelihood of employment can be enhanced by increasing the share of public provision of childcare and preschool services.

KEYWORDS:

• Turkey
• contraception
• childcare
• women
• employment
• endogeneity

JEL Codes:

• C35
• J13
• J21

Notes

1 Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development labor force statistics by sex and age indicators (OECD n.d.).

2 OECD labor force statistics by sex and age indicators (OECD n.d.).

3 Although it is possible to forget to take the pill each day, it is less exposed to risk of usage error. There are no women who use implants.

4 The impact of being a government employee on the probability of choosing an effective contraceptive method over a less effective one is also estimated. The results are not statistically significant but available upon request.

5 The result for the effective-method use was very similar to Model 6, but the effect was insignificant. Thus, it was not reported in this study but is available upon request.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Didem Pekkurnaz

Didem Pekkurnaz is Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at Başkent University, Ankara, Turkey. She holds a PhD in economics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, US. Her research interests include health economics, labor economics, demography, and microeconometrics.