Reproductive decisions and climate change in a pronatalist context

Reproductive decisions and climate change in a pronatalist context
Although the relationship between reproductive decisions and climate change has been increasingly examined in research, most studies have focused on Anglo-Saxon countries or comparative databases. This study contributes to a better understanding of individuals' reproductive choices regarding climate change in a pronatalist country, Hungary. Through 44 semi-structured interviews conducted between September 2020 and March 2022 in Hungary, we found that women are more concerned about the future of their (potential) children than about their (potential) children's carbon dioxide emissions. Additionally, they exhibit condemnatory attitudes towards those who choose not to have children due to climate change. The majority of our interviewees believe that having children is not only an important duty for women to maintain the population size, but also because they think that future generations will be more environmentally conscious.