Italian society is changing profoundly and rapidly due to the pressure of demographic changes that redesign its composition. Yet the demographic issue does not have a significant presence in the political and media debate and is often faced with generic tones, sufficient enough to satisfy specific curiosities or rhetorical needs, but unsuitable to support a constructive reflection.
In this book, Letizia Mencarini and Daniele Vignoli draw a complete picture of Italy's low fertility. “We could say that we are in the middle of a "demographic trap": The fewer children of the past, who are today's parents, are again increasingly fewer and older. Therefore, they are tying down not only current births, but also future ones.”
They also focus on the multitude of economic, social and cultural mechanisms that operate alongside the more strictly demographic forces.