Australian family formation project; Melbourne survey, 1971

In this large-scale demographic survey, family formation and aspects of population change in Australia were investigated. The interview covered fertility, with emphasis on oral contraception; contraceptive change over time; attitudes to sexual mores; the desire at each family level for an additional 'marginal' child; the effect of female employment on fertility and fertility control; the life cycle of families as children are born, reared, educated, employed and leave home; the impact of monetary and other incentives to change fertility levels; the effect of ideas such as zero population growth; and ideas about and reactions to population and migrational change. Special questions were included for use in constructing psychosocial indices of fertility and fertility control practices. Background variables were residential mobility, type of current residence and ownership status; demographic and other information about family of origin; contact with relatives; own and husband's education, work history, and income; birthplace and racial origin of self, husband and parents of both; duration of residence in Melbourne; type of community lived in during adolescence; and religion.