ArticleBMJ global health2022
Changes in marriage, divorce and births during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan.
Article in BMJ global health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers.
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Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 56 citations in OpenAlex.
- Using Machine Learning to Identify Factors Affecting Antibody Production and Adverse Reactions After COVID-19 Vaccination.Vaccines · 2026Article
- Difference in excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic depending on marital status in Japan.PloS one · 2026Article
- Age-specific impact of COVID-19 on birth rates in Japan: An interrupted time-series analysis using national vital statistics.PloS one · 2026Article
- Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the monthly proportion of male births and spontaneous fetal death rates in Japan: a descriptive epidemiological study using national vital statistics.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Explaining the sharp decline in birth rates in Canada and the United States in 2020.American journal of epidemiology · 2025Article
- Birth and pregnancy numbers decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan: A time series analysis with the ARIMA model.The journal of obstetrics and gynaecology research · 2025Article
- Unchanged but undecided: Reproductive intentions among Ghanaian women following COVID-19 lockdowns in two large metropolises in Ghana.PloS one · 2025Article
- To study the impact of COVID-19 on the epidemiological characteristics of allergic rhinitis based on local big data in China.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Decline in and recovery of fertility rates after COVID-19-related state of emergency in Japan.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the rates of adverse birth outcomes and fetal mortality in Japan: an analysis of national data from 2010 to 2022.BMC public health · 2024Article
- The effect of educational attainment on birthrate in Japan: an analysis using the census and the vital statistics from 2000 to 2020.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Article
- Baby Bump or Baby Slump? COVID-19, Lockdowns, and their Effects on Births in Australia.SSM - population health · 2024Article
- Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on marriage, divorce, birth, and death in Kerman province, the ninth most populous province of Iran.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Fertility Declines Near the End of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Evidence of the 2022 Birth Declines in Germany and Sweden.European journal of population = Revue europeenne de demographie · 2024Article
- Do Income and Employment Uncertainty Affect Couple Stability? Evidence for France During the COVID-19 Pandemic.European journal of population = Revue europeenne de demographie · 2023Article
- State-specific fertility rate changes across the USA following the first two waves of COVID-19.Human reproduction (Oxford, England) · 2023Article
- Marriage and divorce during a pandemic: the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on marital formation and dissolution in Mexico.Review of economics of the household · 2023Article
- Social Policies and Theories on Quality of Life under COVID-19: In Search of the Missing Links.Applied research in quality of life · 2023Article
- Article
- Fertility decision of Iranian women during the COVID-19 pandemic and home quarantine: A cross-sectional study in Iran.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 6 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionMarriage, divorce and fertility are declining in Japan. There is concern that the COVID-19 pandemic may have accelerated the decrease in marriages and births while increasing the number of divorces. Changes in partnership behaviours and fertility have significant implications for mental health, well-being and population demographics.
methodsJapanese vital statistical data were collected for December 2011-May 2021. We used the Farrington algorithm on the daily numbers of marriages, divorces and births (per month) in order to determine whether any given month between January 2017 and May 2021 had a significant excess or deficit. Analyses were conducted at the national and regional levels.
resultsDuring the pandemic, significant deficits in the national number of marriages were noted in January 2020, April 2020, May 2020, July 2020, September 2020 and April 2021. Regional marriage patterns reflected national trends. Divorces were noted to be in deficit during April 2020, May 2020 and May 2021 at the country level. Regional analyses mirrored national divorce trends with the exception of Shikoku, which showed no deficits during the pandemic. Significant deficits in the number of total births were noted in December 2020, January 2021 and February 2021. Regionally, birth deficits were concentrated in Chubu, Kansai and Kanto. After the start of the pandemic, no significant excesses in marriages, divorces or births were noted at the national or regional level.
conclusionsMarriages and divorces declined during the pandemic in Japan, especially during state of emergency declarations. There were decreased births between December 2020 and February 2021, approximately 8-10 months after the first state of emergency, suggesting that couples altered their pregnancy intention in response to the pandemic. Metropolitan regions were more affected by the pandemic than their less metropolitan counterparts.
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