Childfree by choice: a review

The decision not to have children represents one of the most remarkable changes in the modern family: during the last few decades the number of couples who voluntarily do not want to become parents (usually called 'childfree') has drastically increased around the world, becoming an important issue for cultural geography. The present paper presents a review of the childfree choice in order to update the literature with particular regard to the demographic incidence of the phenomenon, the motivations underlying such decisions, the sociological aspects, the traditional stereotypes usually attributed to childfree people, and the real psychological aspects that seem to be the basis on which the decision to remain childfree depends.