There is a global trend of women choosing to have children after they have completed their education or when their financial resources will support a family.  In many countries, women are not legally allowed to have children as young as in communities that rely on the inception of fertility to begin marital life though some groups continue to flout the law.  

Instead of biology dictating custom, women now have a range of choices which they did not enjoy before.  Through a focus on capacity, women can achieve their non-family goals, such as an advanced education, professional careers, marriage, business ownership, or other personal ambitions before having children.  If women were having children at 13 or 14, we would not have a dynamic society in which women run some of the most powerful companies in the world, occupy professional positions previously inaccessible to them, and vie for prominent political positions.  Women are better off and society is better off because of a focus on the maximization of human potential rather than biology.

Those who believe that biology should guide law but who believe that having children later than one's teenage years is desirable could argue that the brain of mature women (23 years old and above) is better able to support children and family responsibilities at a later age than menarche.

Let Freedom Reign

Whether marrying early or as an adult, the most important thing is to let everyone make the appropriate choice for themselves.  I believe a focus on maximization of human potential is proper because it preserves freedom and gives more people the chance to take advantage of desirable opportunities.  In societies that use menarche to signal the time to marry, women often do not complete their education and begin the many lifelong labors of care-taking early, leaving little time for their other personal goals.  Child-rearing needs to be a conscious, deliberate, and well thought-out decision by mature parents who have the financial resources to support a family and the determination to stay together to raise their children.  (I mean no offense and pass no judgment on those communities in which young girls marry shortly after menarche.)  

On the other hand, biology provides guidance that individuals should be free to follow or refute.  People are responsible for their choices and they should have the freedom to make educated choices voluntarily within certain parameters set by every jurisdiction.  Those teenagers determined to start life early are legally allowed to do so in many states with the permission of a parent or legal guardian and the approval of a municipal judge or magistrate.  

We should be free to choose when to marry and start a family though we honor freedom best by offering options to everyone to achieve personal goals and fulfill their potential.

What do you think should guide our society - biology or a focus on human potential?  Share your theory with scott@theorism.org.  

Should Society Follow Biology Or Maximum Human Potential?

There are many areas in which cultural customs have followed what was known about human biology.  For millennia, young girls were married shortly after menarche (the first menstrual period).  It was thought that the inception of fertility should begin the time to conceive and bear children.  The question has to be asked: should biology dictate cultural customs or should maximizing human potential direct human society?