Investigation of the effect of religion on population policies and fertility

Religion and religious affiliations have been one of the contributing factors in the discussions and issues concerning population, particularly fertility that has mostly been disregarded by demographers. Since culture and cultural factors are considered as the elements that change the fertility among religious groups in one hand, and religions have focused on the social issues and have emphasized the importance of fertility and the increase of birthrate in the other hand, the aim of the present study was to investigate the influence of religion on population policies and fertility. To achieve this purpose, the library research method was used. The theoretical framework for this study was based on special theological theories, reciprocal interaction and institutional explanation. The study also considered the views of the major religions including Islam, Christian and Judaism on the population and fertility and their influence upon population policies and birth control. The main research questions were what impact religions have on population policy and fertility? And whether religions make a distinction between fertility behaviors?