Introduction
Childbearing is one of the crucial social issues. It is considered as an important factor for sustainable development, especially for countries with a low level of succession [1]. Fertility is the primary driver of population size and composition. Fertility decline is the determining factor in population aging, and the fertility rate has crucial consequences for the age structure of the future population [2, 3]. The continuous decrease in fertility drives out the population’s age structure from the state of youth and directs it toward old age. Therefore, the age pyramid of Iran’s population, which throughout history has always had a broad base and more than 40% of the total population was young and younger than 15 years, has changed in the last two decades due to the decrease in fertility, and a kind of indentation at the base of the pyramid has been created [4, 5]. Iran’s population age pyramid moves from youth to old age. If the starting point of the essential and continuous decrease in fertility in Iran is considered to be 1986, the population structure of Iran will be entirely aged by the end of 2046. According to the World Bank, the growth rate of Iran’s population will reach below 1% by 2025 [6, 7].
The childbearing intention between married men and women and the factors affecting it created significant recognition in demographic developments. In addition, recognizing practical factors overshadows the development of plans and macropolicies. Therefore, the lack of recognition of this critical issue causes adverse demographic developments that directly affect the political, cultural, and economic sectors, leading to a social imbalance. According to a sociological explanation, the unprecedented decrease in fertility leads to a change in the function of the family and children in urban societies [8, 9]. Industrialization, urbanization, and administrative system expansion have been considered practical factors in transforming Western societies in recent centuries. Urbanization has been associated with a series of labor divisions in all areas of life and a high degree of social and spatial mobility [10].
As mentioned, various factors can be related to childbearing. To date, several studies have been conducted so that researchers, managers, and policymakers can examine various factors related to childbearing and make informed decisions using these studies [11]. Various studies in the field of childbearing either examined related factors in women [6], were at the global level [7, 8], or qualitatively examined this issue [9]. However, examining related factors in Iranian couples as a unit (not men or women separately) can express these factors rather comprehensively and be a practical step toward childbearing management and policies. Therefore, owing to the lack of a review study on couples and the importance of childbearing, the present study was conducted to review the demographic factors related to childbearing intention in Iranian couples. The relative advantage of this research is its unique focus on Iranian couples in a sociocultural context specific to Iran.

Materials and Methods
This study is a scoping review. It was conducted in five stages: Designing the research question, searching and extracting related studies, selecting related studies, tabulating and summarizing information and data, and reporting the results [11].

The research question
What demographic factors relate to childbearing intention in Iranian couples?

Search strategy
The researchers used the following keywords and their Persian equivalents in their search strategy:
Population: Iranian couples,
Exposure: Childbearing intention,
Comparison: Couples who do not want to have children, and
Outcome: Social factors related to the childbearing intention.

Search in existing databases
After selecting the research topic, the research question was defined and formulated, and the considered keywords were extracted using the MeSH. All related studies were extracted using keywords selected during the search. EndNote software, version X8 was used for resource management. Articles were extracted based on the selection criteria of the two research team members. Both reviewed the articles independently. Finally, in case of disagreement, the discussed articles were jointly evaluated. This approach was adopted to increase accuracy and reduce errors in extracting articles. After removing duplicates, unrelated articles were identified based on the title, abstract, and full text. Scientific Information Database (SID), PubMed, Magiran, Irandoc, ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Google Scholar search engine databases were searched to identify all electronic articles published between 2013 and 2024. In addition, the list of sources of the identified articles was manually searched in journals to extract articles with related topics. The final search was conducted on September 30, 2024. The keywords used in the search were as follows: Childbearing, effective factors, related factors, demographic factors, social factors, culture, religion, race, place of residence, job, education, age, sex, social media, economic situation, Iran. Persian equivalents were also searched in Persian databases.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria 
The inclusion criteria included observational studies, both cross-sectional, descriptive, and descriptive-analytical cohorts, which investigated the demographic factors related to childbearing in Iranian couples, and studies in which the sample size and the study results were fully stated. The exclusion criteria included a summary of articles presented in conferences, booklets, and grey text (including research reports, theses, conferences, and booklets) that lacked full text.

Extracting articles based on selection criteria
All studies investigating demographic factors related to childbearing intentions in Iranian couples were extracted during the search. After removing duplicates, unrelated articles were identified via title, abstract, and full text, and the researchers selected the final articles.

Checking the quality of articles based on the checklist
AXIS (appraisal tool for cross-sectional studies) is a tool for critical evaluation in cross-sectional studies. It can be used in systematic reviews of health research groups and physicians, the development of guidelines, journal clubs, and other review studies [12]. AXIS was developed based on evidence, epidemiological processes, and the experience of researchers and Delphi participants. This tool examines five sections: Introduction, methods, results, discussion, and other information. Some titles were divided into other subsets and consisted of 20 paragraphs. Seven of the final questions (1, 4, 10, 11, 12, 16, and 18) were related to the quality of reporting, 7 (2, 3, 5, 8, 17, 19, and 20) related to the quality of the study design, and 6 (6, 7, 9, 13, 14, and 15) to the introduction of possible biases in the study. The answer options to the questions included “yes”, “no”, “I do not know”, or a comment (yes, no, don't know/comment). This study used 16 items to evaluate and check biases critically; this checklist only examines the crucial criteria of a cross-sectional study and has no grading [12] (Table 1).





Data extraction and final report
After studying the abstracts and full texts of eligible articles, data were extracted to write the present study. The data necessary for each study included the author’s name(s), year of publication, objectives, sample size, tools, and results. Finally, the data extracted from the articles were classified and reported as the full text of the review article (Table 2).



Collecting and information processing 
A total of 372 articles were identified using these keywords. The information resources management Endnote software, version X8 was used to organize the studies. Eight articles were identified in the manual search. In the first step, 160 duplicate articles were removed from the different databases. After reading the titles, summaries, and full texts, some articles were removed, and finally, 15 studies were selected (Figure 1).

Results
The literature review showed a significant relationship between demographic factors, including age, sex, education, residence, economic status, and couples’ tendency to have children [10, 11, 13-16, 20-24]. The study participants included both genders. The age range of the participants was 15-52 years of reproductive age. In this study, only those that investigated couples were examined. The total number of participants in the 15 studies evaluated was 26712 couples [10, 11, 13-25]. In addition, studies have indicated that gender can be related to childbearing intention [14, 16, 18]. Also, age is one of the related factors to childbearing [13, 16, 24]. Studies have shown that childbearing intention decreases with age [13, 16]. In another study, old age was considered a motivating factor for childbearing [24]. The place of residence is another demographic characteristic with a significant relationship with childbearing. The evaluated studies stated that urbanization is a crucial inhibiting factor compared to living in the countryside [18, 20]. Various studies have shown that education can affect people in two ways. It can create some jobs, such as employees in people and some women due to running away from the workplace and taking leaves and childbearing benefits. However, in some cases, when people’s education is at higher levels due to prominent positions in women, childbearing is considered a limiting factor for people [16, 20, 23, 24]. These studies have pointed out that some factors, such as culture and religion governing the society, are related to childbearing [17-19].
In the theories of these studies, it has been stated that some traditional societies force women to have more children due to restrictions on people, such as lack of education or employment, or other traditions due to survival, and more generations force people to have more children. In some cultures, children are considered a labor force, and having more children means having more power in the family [17-19]. One study described media as facilitating and hindering factors in childbearing. They considered the media, according to its content, as an encouraging or inhibiting factor; for example, things like modernity or individualism or raising domestic animals instead of childbearing in the media can reduce childbearing intention. On the other hand, large families in cyberspace can also be effective advertisements to increase childbearing intentions [17]. In one study, economic issues were not among the factors that reduced childbearing intentions. This study stated that a decrease in income and low economic status did not affect the decrease in childbearing and vice versa [14]. 
However, in 6 studies, economic issues are related to childbearing intention. These studies have stated that economic status can be one of the crucial motivations for fertility [20, 13-25]. In another study, it has been stated that a favorable economic situation can be considered one of the relevant criteria for the number of children. However, an unfavorable economic situation does not necessarily prevent childbearing [23].

Discussion
This study reviewed factors related to childbearing intentions in Iranian couples. Childbearing is a crucial challenge in population science in today’s society. It is one of the vital topics in every society’s social and cultural issues [25]. In Iran, owing to the decrease in population growth, even if it has not reached the replacement line of couples, the lack of childbearing has become a problem. The current study investigated demographic factors related to childbearing intentions among Iranian couples. The reviewed studies divided these factors into inhibitors and facilitators [25, 26]. In this review, 11 studies were selected to determine the demographic factors related to childbearing intention in Iranian couples [13-24]. Rastegarkhaled and Moghadami [20] investigated gender differences in attitudes toward childbearing. They showed that age, emotional dimensions, education, and economic benefits directly and significantly related to childbearing [13]. In this study, old age was considered one of the factors inhibiting childbearing intention, and older people felt less of the need to have children [13]. These results were also obtained by Mahmoudian and Mahmoudiani-Gilan [16]. However, Hamidifar et al. obtained opposite results, stating that old age is one of the motivating factors for childbearing [24]. In the explanation of this study, it is stated that old age, maturity, and experience will encourage people to survive and increase the desire for childbearing [24].
Rad et al. and Danesh et al. showed in their study that a person’s gender has a significant relationship with childbearing intention and the desired number of children, so childbearing is more significant for men due to less pressure in the process of childbearing, so they have a greater desire for this issue. For example, the process of pregnancy, breastfeeding, and the majority of childhood education are the responsibilities of mothers, which reduces their desire to have children [10, 11]. Strengthening job and financial security, providing social support for women for childbearing using the insurance system, and creating favorable working conditions during and after pregnancy can motivate childbearing. In today’s society, childbearing intentions have been seen as the benefits of childbearing for women and men. In this way, it is not far from expected that high education and a good job are sometimes considered encouraging factors in childbearing [16, 20].
Compared to rural life, urbanization inhibits childbearing [18, 20]. The researchers stated in their studies that the reason for this relationship is the increase in amenities and culture dominating urban areas [18, 20]. Media is considered to be one of the encouraging factors or among the factors inhibiting childbearing. It can encourage or weaken childbearing intentions [17]. One study did not consider economic issues as factors reducing childbearing intentions. In this study, with a statistical population of 12858 couples, the decrease in income and low economic status were unrelated to a decrease in childbearing intentions [14]. However, in 6 studies, economic issues were related to childbearing intention. In these studies, it has been stated that the economic situation can change the priorities in the family [13-24]. The media and unfavorable patterns sometimes influence a favorable economic situation. It reduces childbearing intentions by living comfortably and free from responsibility. On the other hand, couples are sometimes more willing to have children due to a lack of economic problems and comfort in life [14, 20-24].
Other factors, such as the culture and religion governing a society, can be related to childbearing intention [17-19]. Childbearing intention refers to a person’s inner interest in and desire to have children. Still, in terms of childbearing, inner desire may not be the dominant one, and sometimes, a person is forced to choose the number of children due to culture and customs ruling a society [26, 27]. For example, some Baloch or Turkmen tribes who belong to the Sunni religion have a strong desire to have children to continue their religion. In some cases, the rate of childbearing in some tribes is determined by the elders of those tribes, and the couple is not responsible for making decisions [17-19]. Religious orientation is one of the factors influencing the desired and existing number of children among employed women. Therefore, it is recommended that cultural affairs based on religious education in family and population planning and policies be paid attention to [28]. Although differences are observed in the fertility tendencies of religious groups, socioeconomic characteristics also play a decisive role in the fertility tendencies of people, regardless of their religious affiliation. Based on this issue, the sustainable and comprehensive success of planning and policies aimed at family and childbearing, regardless of their religious affiliations, needs to expand the development level and improve socioeconomic conditions among all people at the level of the whole society as much as possible [29-32]. According to research results, religious beliefs, ethnic cultures, social norms, attitudes related to childbearing, and social networks are among the reasons for childbearing [33, 34].

Conclusion
The results of the current study indicate that broad demographic factors, such as sex, age, education, place of residence, religion, culture, religiosity, access to the media, and economic issues, are related to childbearing intentions in couples. In this way, it is possible to seek help from these factors mentioned in various studies as a guide to knowing the related factors of couples, and by planning to manage or strengthen some of them, help increase childbearing intention. Even though the current research results show the factors related to childbearing and consider that recognizing them can help identify the facilitating and inhibiting factors, it can also help strengthen the family foundation. With correct planning and the help of demographic experts, appropriate educational programs should be designed to explain the necessary training for young people, families, teachers, and professors to encourage them to have children.
In addition, this research’s results help recognize facilitating and impeding factors. Thus, it can help strengthen the foundation of the family. Childbearing is one of the ways to strengthen the foundation of the family and young society. It is also one of the crucial goals of health in the country. It is hoped that the results of this study will be used to improve policies necessary to increase the quality of childbearing programs.

Limitations
This study has some limitations. Although the inclusion criteria for the articles were identified and examined, some of the published studies may still need to be included. One of the other limitations of this study is the difference in the tools to investigate childbearing in different studies. Another limitation of this study was the unavailability of the full text of some articles and the non-inclusion of non-English or non-Persian language studies.

Ethical Considerations
Compliance with ethical guidelines
All ethical principles are considered in this article.

Funding
This research did not receive any grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or non-profit sectors.

Authors' contributions
All authors equally contributed to preparing this article.

Conflict of interest
The authors declared no conflict of interest.

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