In a European comparison, Germany ranks last when it comes to being child-friendly. Only 21 percent of German citizens consider their country to be child-friendly. It is hardly surprising, then, that the birth rate in Germany is also very low, at 1.37 children per woman. If Germany is to avoid an aging population and thus ensure the continued viability of the current financing model for pensions, health insurance, and long-term care through the so-called "generational pact," Germans must have more children.
But why are so few children born in Germany? Is it the lack of a partner, or the inadequate conditions for combining career and family? Is it individual selfishness or insufficient social recognition?
The majority of German citizens cite three main reasons as decisive for the low number of families being founded:

1. The desire for freedom and independence.
2. Concerns about the financial burden of raising children.
3. The personal preference for one's own career over starting a family.

This is the result of a recent representative survey conducted by the non-profit Foundation for Future Issues, an initiative of British American Tobacco, for which 2,000 people aged 14 and over were interviewed.
„Many Germans are simply afraid of starting a family,“ says Professor Dr. Ulrich Reinhardt, the foundation’s scientific director. It’s the „fear of losing their autonomy, fear of the costs, fear of jeopardizing their career opportunities, fear of divorce, of the wrong time, or of the future prospects for their children,“ Reinhardt summarizes.
Furthermore, the lack of state and societal conditions for families is criticized: The arguments range from a lack of kindergarten places to family-unfriendly cities to the low social status of families.

Women especially miss the compatibility of career and family.

Different reasons are important within the population. West Germans tend to cite the lack of a partner (West: 41%; East: 32%), while East Germans criticize the governmental framework (West: 43 %; East: 58 %).
Significant differences also emerge when broken down by net household income. Higher earners consider their career more important than starting a family (from €2,500 monthly net household income: 56 %; below €1,000: 45 %).
Low-income earners, on the other hand, are less likely to believe in "the partner for life" and fear that their child would grow up with only one parent (from €2,500 net monthly household income: 19 %; below €1,000: 32 %). They also complain significantly more often about the lack of state and societal support (higher earners: 43 %; low earners: 56 %).
The difficulty of reconciling career and family is cited particularly frequently by working women as an argument against starting a family (working women: 52; working men: 44). This group also increasingly fears that their children will not be able to lead a safe and carefree life in the future (working women: 50; working men: 45).