Comments on: Why Americans Breed http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/ The Sweet Release of Reason Thu, 09 Feb 2012 18:11:50 +0000 hourly 1 By: Wholesale Korean Fashion http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9793 Wholesale Korean Fashion Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:13:45 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9793 Wonderful article, just added the site to my favorites. Thanks so much. Wonderful article, just added the site to my favorites. Thanks so much.

]]> By: Vancouver, Canada http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9792 Vancouver, Canada Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:21:41 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9792 Hi. A little late here but I have a question... Why is it assumed that Americans are more optimistic by the Harris Poll (Nearly two-thirds (65%) of adults in the United States say they expect their lives will improve in the next five years) Maybe the other countries are already happy/content and don't think it can get any better - whereas the American respondents are not currently happy and need to hope for a better future. I am a happy Canadian and would answer the Harris poll as 'not expecting the future to improve' because I can't see how my life could improve. A lot of the explanations for why Americans have a higher birth rate also apply to Canada (more 'dirt', lots of immigration, descendants of immigrants) but Canadians have a low birth rate. Exploring the differences between these two similar countries may help answer why Americans are so fertile. Hi. A little late here but I have a question…
Why is it assumed that Americans are more optimistic by the Harris Poll (Nearly two-thirds (65%) of adults in the United States say they expect their lives will improve in the next five years)

Maybe the other countries are already happy/content and don’t think it can get any better – whereas the American respondents are not currently happy and need to hope for a better future.

I am a happy Canadian and would answer the Harris poll as ‘not expecting the future to improve’ because I can’t see how my life could improve.

A lot of the explanations for why Americans have a higher birth rate also apply to Canada (more ‘dirt’, lots of immigration, descendants of immigrants) but Canadians have a low birth rate. Exploring the differences between these two similar countries may help answer why Americans are so fertile.

]]> By: Vancouver, Canada http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9829 Vancouver, Canada Sat, 26 Jul 2008 14:21:00 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9829 Hi. A little late here but I have a question... Why is it assumed that Americans are more optimistic by the Harris Poll (Nearly two-thirds (65%) of adults in the United States say they expect their lives will improve in the next five years) Maybe the other countries are already happy/content and don't think it can get any better - whereas the American respondents are not currently happy and need to hope for a better future. I am a happy Canadian and would answer the Harris poll as 'not expecting the future to improve' because I can't see how my life could improve. A lot of the explanations for why Americans have a higher birth rate also apply to Canada (more 'dirt', lots of immigration, descendants of immigrants) but Canadians have a low birth rate. Exploring the differences between these two similar countries may help answer why Americans are so fertile. Hi. A little late here but I have a question…
Why is it assumed that Americans are more optimistic by the Harris Poll (Nearly two-thirds (65%) of adults in the United States say they expect their lives will improve in the next five years)

Maybe the other countries are already happy/content and don’t think it can get any better – whereas the American respondents are not currently happy and need to hope for a better future.

I am a happy Canadian and would answer the Harris poll as ‘not expecting the future to improve’ because I can’t see how my life could improve.

A lot of the explanations for why Americans have a higher birth rate also apply to Canada (more ‘dirt’, lots of immigration, descendants of immigrants) but Canadians have a low birth rate. Exploring the differences between these two similar countries may help answer why Americans are so fertile.

]]> By: Points Of Note » Why do Americans Breed? http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9791 Points Of Note » Why do Americans Breed? Wed, 02 May 2007 01:03:33 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9791 [...] A great post by Cato analyst Will Wilkinson.  Check it out here. [...] [...] A great post by Cato analyst Will Wilkinson.  Check it out here. [...]

]]> By: great_ape http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9790 great_ape Tue, 01 May 2007 23:14:58 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9790 Is there readily available data concerning the gender distribution among new births across these countries? There have been some reports in the scientific literature suggesting that women who are feeling more optimistic are more likely to give birth to boys. (Boys require more resources both during pregnancy and after birth.) If I recall correctly, the effect was not dramatic, but it was statistically significant. A trend towards more boys in countries with higher birth rates would lend support to the the optimism hypothesis. Is there readily available data concerning the gender distribution among new births across these countries? There have been some reports in the scientific literature suggesting that women who are feeling more optimistic are more likely to give birth to boys. (Boys require more resources both during pregnancy and after birth.) If I recall correctly, the effect was not dramatic, but it was statistically significant. A trend towards more boys in countries with higher birth rates would lend support to the the optimism hypothesis.

]]> By: great_ape http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9796 great_ape Tue, 01 May 2007 23:14:00 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9796 Is there readily available data concerning the gender distribution among new births across these countries? There have been some reports in the scientific literature suggesting that women who are feeling more optimistic are more likely to give birth to boys. (Boys require more resources both during pregnancy and after birth.) If I recall correctly, the effect was not dramatic, but it was statistically significant. A trend towards more boys in countries with higher birth rates would lend support to the the optimism hypothesis. Is there readily available data concerning the gender distribution among new births across these countries? There have been some reports in the scientific literature suggesting that women who are feeling more optimistic are more likely to give birth to boys. (Boys require more resources both during pregnancy and after birth.) If I recall correctly, the effect was not dramatic, but it was statistically significant. A trend towards more boys in countries with higher birth rates would lend support to the the optimism hypothesis.

]]> By: Why We Keep Having So Many Babies : Hear ItFrom.Us http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9789 Why We Keep Having So Many Babies : Hear ItFrom.Us Tue, 01 May 2007 20:58:12 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9789 [...] Mangu-Ward at Reason has blogs about Wilkinson, who cites a Harris Poll.  Mangu-Ward says that Wilkinson claims that the Harris Poll [...] [...] Mangu-Ward at Reason has blogs about Wilkinson, who cites a Harris Poll.  Mangu-Ward says that Wilkinson claims that the Harris Poll [...]

]]> By: Jose http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9788 Jose Tue, 01 May 2007 14:26:36 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9788 I wouldn't conflate "optimism" with "happiness". The Danes for instance are a very pessimistic but very happy bunch. I'm extremely skeptical of any reasoning that boils down human nature in such simplistic terms. There may be social trends at work that aren't happening simultaneously on either side of the Atlantic. For instance the explosion in pre marital sex we've seen in the west didn't start everywhere at once. The same could be true for birth rates. Whatever factors that are at work in Europe might start revealing their hand in the USA in a decade or two (if ever). I wouldn’t conflate “optimism” with “happiness”. The Danes for instance are a very pessimistic but very happy bunch. I’m extremely skeptical of any reasoning that boils down human nature in such simplistic terms.

There may be social trends at work that aren’t happening simultaneously on either side of the Atlantic. For instance the explosion in pre marital sex we’ve seen in the west didn’t start everywhere at once. The same could be true for birth rates. Whatever factors that are at work in Europe might start revealing their hand in the USA in a decade or two (if ever).

]]> By: Jose http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9795 Jose Tue, 01 May 2007 14:26:00 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9795 I wouldn't conflate "optimism" with "happiness". The Danes for instance are a very pessimistic but very happy bunch. I'm extremely skeptical of any reasoning that boils down human nature in such simplistic terms. There may be social trends at work that aren't happening simultaneously on either side of the Atlantic. For instance the explosion in pre marital sex we've seen in the west didn't start everywhere at once. The same could be true for birth rates. Whatever factors that are at work in Europe might start revealing their hand in the USA in a decade or two (if ever). I wouldn’t conflate “optimism” with “happiness”. The Danes for instance are a very pessimistic but very happy bunch. I’m extremely skeptical of any reasoning that boils down human nature in such simplistic terms.

There may be social trends at work that aren’t happening simultaneously on either side of the Atlantic. For instance the explosion in pre marital sex we’ve seen in the west didn’t start everywhere at once. The same could be true for birth rates. Whatever factors that are at work in Europe might start revealing their hand in the USA in a decade or two (if ever).

]]> By: Hello, Gorgeous! « Lotus http://willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9787 Hello, Gorgeous! « Lotus Tue, 01 May 2007 03:27:39 +0000 http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2007/04/27/why-americans-breed/#comment-9787 [...] don’t out-breed Europeans because of housing rates or optimism or religion or any of that stuff. We out-breed them because we have better dentists; we’re just too damn pretty to resist each [...] [...] don’t out-breed Europeans because of housing rates or optimism or religion or any of that stuff. We out-breed them because we have better dentists; we’re just too damn pretty to resist each [...]

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