Warren S. Thompson

Differentials in Fertility and Levels of Living in the Rural Population of the United States

T HERE is a considerable body of information relating to differential fertility in the United States. The greater part of this relates to differences in birth rates and ratios of children between urban and rural populations, between different economic and social groups, particularly in the urban population, and between a few broad groups in different geographic areas-states, divisions, and regions. The differences in fertility of rural groups in the same state or region having different levels of living have received comparatively little attention because of the scarcity of data on levels of living. This is true also for differences between whites and nonwhites in those parts of the country where the latter constitute a significant proportion of the rural population.