Rising women’s educational level and their increasing job opportunities are the two main reasons behind a rapid drop in Korea’s fertility rate. But, existing studies have not shown specifically how the growing number of women in the labor market is linked to the drop in birthrate. This study uses a life-cycle utility maximization model to calculate the shadow cost of childbirth, and analyzes how the women’s higher education and increased economic activity raised the shadow cost of childbirth leading to the drop in the fertility rate. The result shows that as for women with college diploma, the difficulty in returning to work after giving birth is the most important factor in delaying their childbirth, and also the overall downturn of women’s wage curve. In addition, the increase in their wage level also raises the shadow cost of childbirth, resulting in low birth rate.

This study firmly shows that the rising wages of women in the labor market is a critical factor that causes fertility drop. Based on such result, the study suggests that policies to reduce the fall in women’s labor supply due to childbirth would be beneficial to the improvement in the fertility rate as well as economic growth. In this context, further analyses are required on women returning to work after giving birth, women’s labor market conditions, and effective policy tools, such as childcare support and maternity leave.

발간사
요 약

제1장 연구의 필요성 및 목적

제2장 연구문헌 분석

제3장 출산의 잠재비용 분석을 위한 생애효용모형

제4장 실증분석
　제1절 분석자료
　제2절 「2006년 출산력 조사」자료 분석
　제3절 출산의 잠재비용 파라미터의 추정
　　1. 보육의 시간비용 파라미터()
　　2. 임금률의 추정
　제4절 출산의 잠재비용 추정

제5장 민감도 분석 및 결론

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