Fertility has been declining in most parts of the modern world, thereby driving global population aging, with some countries aging faster than others. In some economies, the decline in fertility rates and the subsequent population aging has been more gradual, allowing social protection systems to develop side by side. But for many others, the process has been more abrupt, putting increased financial pressure not just on old-age support systems but on social protection in general. In Stuart Gietel-Baten's words, population aging has been depicted as “bad for the economy, bad for the maintenance of health and welfare systems, bad for existential future of the country, and even bad for the race or the culture” (p. 1). This simplistic presentation of population aging has prompted many countries to introduce policies to prod households to bear (more) children in response.

In The “Population Problem” in Pacific Asia, Gietel-Baten argues that such popular unidimensional appreciation of the drivers and consequences of fertility decline has elicited unidimensional policy responses with unclear indications of success. And only by “think[ing] multidimensionally about fertility” (p. 5) can the problem really be addressed. Having low fertility is not the only problem, but how it is viewed in the first place. These issues are laid out in the first two chapters, highlighting common depictions of the population problem and the ensuing policy responses. Chapter 3 takes a step back by providing a more technical but simplified overview of fertility measurements beyond total fertility rate and tracing how countries fare based on these different measures. In the next three chapters, the book takes a closer look at the many multidimensional issues surrounding marriage and childbearing in low-fertility Pacific Asia (LFPA). Chapters 7 and 8 make a more in-depth case study of China. Finally, the last chapter weaves the strands of stories in LFPA and China highlighted throughout the volume into one colorful yet coherent tapestry.

Is low fertility really a problem? Instead of tackling the question head on, Gietel-Basten spins the question on its head and proposes that “[r]ather than being a problem, [low fertility] is the symptom of various institutional malfunctions” (p. 4). In so doing, the book unmasks a different “population problem” in the Asia-Pacific—the kind that impacts peoples’ everyday lives, and not just their bedroom urges to have children.

Drawing primarily from the experiences of Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and China, the book demystifies issues surrounding low fertility by exploring how institutional factors surrounding marriage and childbearing affect individual decisions to actually form families or have children. The book skillfully juxtaposes competing issues, for example, on individual goals and communal aspirations, modern roles and traditional expectations, private activities and public policies, and the desired and what is actually achieved. The book draws on recent research from several disciplines, including demography, economics, sociology, and public policy, supplemented with its own data analyses.

Has the younger generation become more individualistic and selfish to renege on its generational responsibility to marry and have children? Are men just too lazy to contribute to housework that women would rather not marry? Do couples just not want to have children? Are children really that expensive or burdensome? Or are there just so many barriers that keep people from settling down, having their own family, and attaining the number of children that they would have wanted? These are only some of the questions that the book tries to answer. Instead of pointing fingers at individuals, the book invites readers to widen their view of the “population problem.” Then, “the hypocrisy of the whole system” (p. 165) with greedy institutions that abuses and exploits while eschewing responsibility becomes more apparent.

The book is designed for casual readers, but technical people will also find it a delight. With only 178 pages of exposition and 36 pages of references, the book provides a thorough discussion of the issues in a nontechnical manner and an ample list of more technical materials for further reading. It is a good introduction to policies, as well as to the theories and empirics surrounding marriage and fertility. While the book focuses on only six aging economies in LFPA, it contains many lessons for other countries in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.