A survey of social-psychological variables used in studies of family planning

Abstract

Social-psychological variables such as perception (of the population problem, of family planning and others' opinions) and motivation are critical factors in the diffusion of family planning. This paper synthesizes findings from several crosscultural studies of these variables, suggests hypotheses for future research, and discusses problems of data-gathering.Internal patterns are found to exist in relatively modern societies, in the same way that traditional societies manifest typical cognitive, attitudinal and behavioral patterns. The concept of diffusion, as related to "modernizing--traditional" and "subculture" typologies, is shown to be a more suitable strategy in the study of social-psychological variables.The limitations of the survey method are pointed out, and the use of less structured techniques, such as participants' observations and unobtrusive psychometric measures, are suggested.