The Factors That Reduce Fertility and The Policies that Enhance it

December 19-20, 2024 Budapest

The kick-off conference of the Family, Fertility and Human Development Initiative aims to convene leading scholars and analysts from around the world to discuss the causes and consequences of fertility decline using data analyses to identify differences in fertility by socioeconomic status, religion, and culture. As a collaborative effort, we hope to assess the causes of these trends, evaluate the literature’s explanations, and assess the effectiveness of pro-fertility policies and other cultural factors. The conference will include workshop sessions to prepare interdisciplinary research questions for further investigation in the new year, with the ultimate goal of a special journal issue publication.

 

Featured Attendees and Speakers

James J. Heckman, The University of Chicago (Principal Investigator of the Project)
Zoltán Oszkár Szántó, Corvinus University (Host of the Conference)
Matthias Doepke
, Northwestern University
Tomáš Sobotka, Vienna Institute of Demography
Eliana La Ferrara, Harvard University
Hanming Fang, University of Pennsylvania
Matt Deventhal, University of Southern California
Ron Lee, University of California, Berkeley
Klaus Zimmerman, Free University Berlin
Alicia Adserà, Princeton University
David Weil, Brown University
Uta Schönberg, University of Hong Kong
Angela Greulich, ScincePo Paris
Anna Matysiak, University of Warsaw
Zsuzsanna Makay, Hungarian Demographic Research Institute
András Gábos, TÁRKI Social Research Institute in Budapest
Márton Medgyesi, Corvinus University
Karel Neels, University of Antwerp
Pieter Vanhuysse, University of Southern Denmark
Bram De Rock, Université libre de Bruxelles
Róbert Gál, Corvinus University
Zsolt Spéder, Hungarian Demographic Research Institute
Tamás Bartus, Corvinus University

Conference Videos

Welcoming Remarks
Zoltán O. Szántó


Overview
James Heckman Ronald Lee


The New Low Fertility Landscape
Tomas Sobotka


The Economics of Fertility
Matthias Doepke


Demographic Transitions Across Time and Space
Matt Delventhal


Economic Growth
Ronald Lee


Replacement Fertility is Neither Natural nor Optimal nor Likely
David Weil


Entertainment Media and Norms Change
Eliana La Ferrara


Wind of Change Cultural Determinants of Maternal Labour Supply
Uta Schonberg


Spouses with Benefits
Bram de Rock


Educational Expansion, Economic Cycles and Low Fertility
Karel Neels


Policy Responses to Low Fertility
Tomáš Sobotka and Anna Matysiak


Cash Benefit or Tax Incentives
Zsolt Speder


Family Ideals across Cultures
Alicia Adsera


Quantitatively Assessing Norms
Cristina Bicchieri


Desired Fertility Actual Fertility and the Effects of Chinas Universal Two Child Policy
Hanming Fang


Why are Family Benefits Tools of Fair Distributions
Robert Gal and Pieter Vanhuysse


Program

Venue: Corvinus University of Budapest, Building C, 1st floor, Library, Aquarium Conference Room
(Address: 1093 Budapest, Közraktár Str. 4-6.)

Day 1: 19 December 2024

9:10 – 9:30

Welcome
Zoltán O. Szántó

Overview of Issues
James J. Heckman and Ron Lee

9:30-10:20

The new low-fertility landscape: rapid shifts, ambiguous preferences, changing determinants, and uncertain future outlook
Tomáš Sobotka, Vienna Institute of Demography

10:20-11:10

The economics of fertility, a new era
Matthias Doepke, London School of Economics

11:10-11:40

Demographic transitions across time and space
Matt Delventhal
, University of Southern California

11:40-12:15

Coffee Break & Demographics and Facts Discussion
Chair: James J. Heckman and Ronald Lee

12:15 – 13:00

Buffet Lunch

13:00-13:50

Economic Growth, Intergenerational Transfers, And Population Ageing
Ronald Lee, University of California, Berkeley

13:50-14:40

Replacement Fertility is Neither Natural, nor Optimal, nor Likely
David Weil, Brown University

14:40-15:10

Consequences Discussion
Chair: James J. Heckman and Ronald Lee

15:10-15:20

Coffee Break

15:20-16:00

Entertainment media and norms change
Eliana La Ferrara, Harvard Kennedy School

16:00-16:50

Wind of Change? Cultural Determinants of Maternal Labour Supply
Uta Schönberg, University of Hong Kong

16:50-18:00

Roundtable Close
Chair: James J. Heckman, Ronald Lee, Presenter Panel

Day 2: 20 December 2024

9:00-9:50

Educational expansion, economic cycles and low fertility
Karel Neels, University of Antwerp

9:50-10:40

Policy responses to low fertility: How effective are they?
Tomáš Sobotka, Vienna Institute of Demography

10:40-11:30

Cash benefit or tax incentives
Zsolt Spéder, Hungarian Demographic Research Institute

11:30-11:45

Coffee Break

11:45-12:35

Family ideals in an era of low fertility
Alícia Adserà, Princeton University

12:35-13:25

Quantitatively assessing norms (Virtual)
Cristina Bicchieri, University of Pennsylvania

13:25 – 14:10

Buffet Lunch

14:10-15:00

Policy & Norms Discussion
Chair: James J. Heckman and Ronald Lee

15:00 - 15:45

Desired Fertility, Actual Fertility and the Effects of China’s Universal Two-Child Policy
Hanming Fang, University of Pennsylvania

15:45 - 16:30

Why are Family Benefits Tools of Fair Distributions Rather than Fertility Incentives?
Róbert Gál, Corvinus University
Pieter Vanhuysse, University of Southern Denmark

16:30-17:30

Roundtable Discussion
Chair: James J. Heckman and Ronald Lee

17:30-18:00

Summary
James J. Heckman, The University of Chicago
Ronald Lee, University of California, Berkeley
Tomáš Sobotka, Vienna Institute of Demography
Matthias Doepke, London School of Economics
Zsolt Spéder, Hungarian Demographic Research Institute

Closing remarks
Zoltán, O. Szántó, Corvinus University Budapest

18:00

Reception at Corvinus Institute for Advanced Studies

Reading List

Adsera

Bartus

Delventhal

Doepke

  • Doepke, Matthias, Anne Hannusch, Fabian Kindermann, and Michèle Tertilt. 2023. "The economics of fertility: a new era." In Handbook of the Economics of the Family, edited by Shelly Lundberg and Alessandra Voena, 151-254. North-Holland.

Fang

Gál

Greulich

La Ferrara

Lee

Makay

Medgyesi

Schonberg

Sobotka

Spéder

Vanhuysse

Weil