Neighbors’ Social Attitudes Predict Variations in Live Births among the Amish of Holmes County, Ohio, United States

Demographic Research

Shetler, Anna, and Cory Anderson. 2025.

53(25):773-820.

Research Points
  • Tests whether nearby neighbors’ religiosity relates to household (HH) fertility among the Amish in Holmes County, Ohio.
  • Links a near-census of households to mapped distances to leaders, strict/lenient denominations, and villages.
  • Finds that proximity effects are not one-directional but depend on who the household is and its stage of childbearing. Specifically:
  •  
  • Strict HHs, reproductive-risk: closer to strict HHs → +24% expected live births (IRR = 1.240).
  • Strict HHs, completed-fertility: closer to ordained HHs → +15% (IRR = 1.152).
  • Lenient HHs, reproductive-risk: closer to ordained HHs → +8% (IRR = 1.084).
  • All HHs: closer to village centers → −1.2% (IRR = 0.988).
  • Lenient HHs, completed-fertility: closer to village centers → −1.6% (IRR = 0.984).
  • All HHs: closer to strict HHs → −0.5% (IRR = 0.995).
  • Shows that the influence of neighbors is multifaceted—different social settings can amplify or dampen fertility depending on household identity and timing.
 
 

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