What theories explain the increase in couples choosing to be child-free?

I have to write an essay and in one part of it I have to talk about two theories that explain why a couple would want to be child-free (childless by choice).


The only one I can think of is the social exchange theory. What is another one?What theories explain the increase in couples choosing to be child-free?
Maybe because people are waiting so long to get married. If a couple only gets married in their early thirties, then maybe by 35 they start thinking about starting a family. Then they start thinking about how old they will be when the child graduates from college and decide that the time to have a child has passed. So, they just never get around to it.What theories explain the increase in couples choosing to be child-free?
There used to be a child-free network of couples who chose to be child-free, I don't know if they have a website or not. Well for some people they were raised to feel like children were a burden to their parents, so maybe that is why they chose not to have kids. Many people I know chose not to have kids because their own families were abusive, and they thought it was a good way to end the cycle of abuse. You wouldn't want to bring your child around your parents if they were abusive physically or sexually, so that is a reason for some people. Some people choose not to have kids because they have so many nieces and nephews who were unwanted, so they chose to help the poor kids that are already in the world, and not bring any more kids in the world.
economic burden? Having a kid is really expensive, add that to housing crisis, economic depression, horrible health care, and alot of jobs going down the toilet, it may not be the best idea to have a child now.





Then there's always the increase of the woman population that are actually out and working. Most fathers don't want to stay home and be house sitter so there's really no one to take care of the child if one was to come along.
Expense could be one. Also, a couple from a large family could remember how tough times were and may opt not to bring children of their own into the world. There could also be illnesses or diseases that are genetic with one or both parents. And then there is the old original, children just demand to much time and energy.
The culture of death and non-sustainability coupled with guilt- add to that immaturity and selfishness.