Educational Media Reviews Online

Laura Scott made a conscious decision not to have children. Having made that choice she also wondered about the motivation and decision making process of others who had also chosen to be voluntarily childless so she launched into a research project that has resulted in the Childless by Choice Project. The project began with extensive reading on the topic followed by a survey; a series of interviews; a book, Two is Enough: A Couple’s Guide to Living Childless by Choice; and a website that hosts links to community events and online forums for others who are exploring or have made the decision to be intentionally childless.

Scott’s survey was of 171 self-selected subjects who rated eighteen commonly stated motivations for choosing to be child free on how closely they could relate to each statement. Using that data she was able to categorize the motivation into four main types: Early Articulator, Postponer, Acquiescer, and Undecided. Scott published the results of the survey in her book. She then set off on a road trip to ten U.S. states and two Canadian provinces to interview and film couples who were childless by choice to create this film. She interviewed couples of varied backgrounds and in each of the four categories of motivation. She included as well, a social scientist, a demographer, an historian, and an author of self-help books to give context for the content of the interviews. The couples are articulate and open with feelings and thoughts about their motivation to choose to be child-free; the process of making that decision, family influences, societal pressures, the definition of family, the concept of parenting instinct, and whether making that choice brought with it any regrets.

The videography of the film is well done and the contemporary interviews are interspersed with black and white film clips that illustrate traditional messages concerning families and childbearing. Though Scott is clear that she has made a choice to remain child-free and the couples that are interviewed express strong feelings on the issue, the film presents the topic in a neutral manor overall. This film would be appropriate for public, junior high and high school libraries as well as college libraries to support human development, health sciences, sociology, psychology, women’s studies, and anthropology. For more information visit the Childless by Choice Project website.