Young people in search of family
Letizia Mencarini and Arnstein Aassve present the results of a recent survey on the aspirations of the young worldwide. Contrary to the prevailing current narrative, family formation is still a … Read more
Working longer despite poorer health in South Korea
With increasing life expectancy, people are expected to work longer, but longer working lives are not inherently healthier. By estimating the years people spend working with chronic disease, Anastasia Lam … Read more
When babies and PhDs collide: a gendered story
Becoming a parent during doctoral training carries lasting career consequences, but not equally for women and men. Xinyi Zhao presents the results of a global study on 8,097 academic parents … Read more
Too old to give blood? Not in South Korea
As populations age across East Asia, blood banks face a double squeeze: fewer young donors and more elderly patients needing transfusions. South Korea, Oh Seok Kim notes, has promptly responded … Read more
National identity and fertility intentions in Hungary
National identity, defined as attachment to the nation, shapes behaviour. As fertility declines, childbearing may become a national issue. If the nation is important to individuals, are they more likely … Read more
Longer lives, less healthy ageing? The Australian case
Migrants in Australia live longer than the Australian-born population, but their health advantage fades with age. The gap is especially striking for migrant women. A longer life, Guogui Huang and … Read more
Life trajectories of African unwed mothers after the loss of their child
Yingyi Lin, Emily Smith-Greenaway, Camila Cortes Rodriguez, and Shelley Clark examine how the death of a premaritally born child affects an unmarried mother’s future life trajectory in 26 sub-Saharan Africa … Read more
Health around the time of first birth matters for future fertility
Evidence from Norway indicates that chronic health problems are just one of the factors liable to influence individual fertility. Øystein Kravdal, Emily Grundy, and Rannveig K. Hart argue that health … Read more
Estimating years lived across racial categories in Brazil*
Using multistate life tables techniques, Jerônimo Muniz, Aliya Saperstein, and Bernardo Queiroz estimate that about one out of two Brazilians initially classified as Black will be reclassified as Brown, as … Read more
Violence begets violence. Evidence from the Nigerian Civil War (1967–1970)
Women exposed to war are known to be at higher risk of intimate partner violence, but is this simply because their husbands, too, endured war? Studying the Nigerian Civil War … Read more
Reproductive life concentrated into ever-shorter windows*
Demographers have long tracked how many children women have and when. But how widely fertility is spread across reproductive ages has received comparatively little attention. Thomas Spoorenberg introduces a simple … Read more
Can we really predict individual-level longevity?
Disparities in life expectancy across sociodemographic groups are large in the U.S. Still, using linked Census and mortality records for men born in 1910, Casey Breen and Nathan Seltzer find … Read more
Son preference and reproductive behaviour in Uzbekistan
Using data from the 2021–2022 Uzbekistan Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey, Khilola Dushamova, Rashid Javed, Gayrat Suyunov and Munira Zakirova find that son preference shapes reproductive behaviour among Uzbek women. Women … Read more
Why menstrual health belongs in population surveys
Population surveys measure health and wellbeing but overlook menstrual cycle status and symptom burden, a blind spot affecting nearly half the population. Drawing on a survey review and qualitative research, … Read more
Child stunting: lessons from global history
Child stunting, being too short for one’s age, is widely seen as a problem of today’s poorer countries. A systematic review of data from 122 countries since the 19th century … Read more
Change is the only constant: living arrangements in the United States, 1850–2021
Living arrangements are the reflection of demographic and social change. Using historical census data from the United States, Ginevra Floridi and Albert Esteve summarise 170 years of change in household … Read more
Women’s stable employment and first births in Europe
Although men’s employment has a consistently positive association with starting a family in Europe, this association has been less clear for women. Using harmonized couple-level data for the years 2004–2017, … Read more
Children’s schooling and living arrangements in 24 African countries
As Maria Pohl, Ewa Batyra and Albert Esteve demonstrate, despite recent progress, differences in school enrolment by children’s living arrangements persist in Africa, driving diversity within and between countries. Children … Read more
The end of lowest-low as we knew it: one threshold, many futures
“Lowest-low fertility” has become widespread but is now less informative, Stuart Gietel-Basten and Ignacio Pardo argue. Countries sharing very low fertility levels increasingly follow divergent demographic trajectories. A single threshold … Read more
China: demographic dividend and skill-based productivity
As populations grow older, the economic boost known as the demographic dividend, driven by a large working-age population, is fading. However, the drivers of prosperity are shifting. Using Chinese demographic … Read more
On Türkiye’s recent rapid fertility decline
In the last decade, Türkiye has recorded the steepest fertility decline in Europe. Period indicators, however, reveal only part of the story. With a birth-order analysis Sutay Yavuz shows that … Read more
Population growth and family planning are still important. Has UNFPA forgotten?
Projected population growth of about 2 billion in Africa and elsewhere will contribute to poverty, poor reproductive health, environmental degradation and climate change. Frank Götmark, Chukwuedozie Ajaero, Mohammad Mainul Islam, Rhoda … Read more
How siblings shape cognitive aging. Evidence from American families
Yiang Li’s research on Americans born in the early 20th century shows that adults who grew up with multiple brothers and sisters, especially siblings close in age, experienced markedly faster cognitive … Read more
Measuring life expectancy with care needs in Ibero-American countries
Increasing life expectancy across the world calls for a comprehensive understanding of how these additional years are lived by individuals. By estimating years of life expectancy with care needs in … Read more
Economic cycles and first births among natives and migrants’ children in Belgium
Economic cycles shape first births in Belgium and help explain aggregate fertility trends. However, as Wood, Neels and Marynissen show, pro-cyclical fertility holds for natives and European descendants, but not … Read more
Extending working lives: how European birth cohorts compare
Promoting longer working lives has become a key policy response to population ageing. Jan Einhoff finds that successive European birth cohorts have spent a growing number of years in employment … Read more
Beyond national borders: assessing avoidable mortality across European districts (2002–2019)
Avoidable mortality is traditionally analysed at the national level. Using district-level data from 10 European countries between 2002 and 2019, Sophie Stroisch, Michael Mühlichen, Pavel Grigoriev and Tobias Vogt reveal … Read more
Every year of schooling counts for dementia risk in the US
In the US, each additional year of education is linked to a lower risk of dementia in later life, Hyungmin Cha notes. The decline is steady across the education spectrum, … Read more
Immigrant housing and mobility across countries and generations
Harmonised cross-national data from five European countries reveals persistent differences in residential mobility and housing patterns among immigrants and their descendants in Europe. Joseph Harrison notes that differences between immigrants … Read more
How seasonal mortality shapes life expectancy in Europe (2000-2019)
Mortality in Europe follows a clear seasonal pattern, with more deaths during winter months especially, but their impact on life expectancy is often overlooked. Using data from 20 countries, Isabella … Read more
Formal childcare and the next child in ten European countries
Working parents with at least one child who use formal childcare services are not always more likely to have further children. As Jonas Wood shows, the European evidence is mixed, … Read more
Not just later: why marriage is disappearing in South Korea
First marriage in South Korea has declined sharply over the past three decades. This is not simply a story of later marriage. Even after accounting for delayed timing, Sam Hyun … Read more
Your partner’s education shapes your survival
People with higher levels of education tend to live longer, healthier lives. However, education is not only an individual resource – its benefits may also be shared between partners. Using … Read more
The role of polygyny in sub-Saharan Africa’s fertility decline
Across 23 sub-Saharan African countries, fertility decline in the past few decades is in good part attributable to the shrinking share of women in polygynous unions. As Sophia Chae and … Read more
Small-scale mortality in Italy: 2002–2018*
The study of small-scale mortality, although of great interest, is rarely feasible due to data limitations. By exploiting a municipality-level database prepared by the Italian National Institute of Statistics (Istat), … Read more
Ebook • From arrival to settlement. Vulnerabilities of asylum seekers and refugees in Europe
Italy, one of the strategic entry points into Europe for refugees and asylum seekers, is facing increasing arrivals with a reception system that is not always adequate and not always … Read more
Fertility postponement is not a universal correlate of fertility decline
Worldwide, the path leading to delayed fertility is more complex than it may appear at first sight. Thomas Spoorenberg and Vegard Skirbekk offer a few keys to better interpret current … Read more
The disproportionate burden of multi-morbidity at death in the US
Using multiple cause-of-death data from the United States, France, Italy, and Spain, Magali Barbieri and colleagues show that multi-morbidity at death contributes disproportionately to the US disadvantage in life expectancy … Read more
Policy polarization is rewriting the American geography of longevity
The United States is becoming increasingly heterogeneous, a tendency also reflected in mortality trends. Perhaps unexpectedly, one of the driving forces behind these trends is state political orientation, as Anneliese … Read more
The growing importance of donor eggs in assisted reproductive technologies in UK
Across high-income countries, women and couples are having children later than ever before, sometimes turning to assisted reproductive technologies (ART). At older ages, however, Ester Lazzari and Luzia Bruckamp say, … Read more
Too much for the Dutch? How the Dutch baby boom affected kinship size in 2018
Dutch kinship network data, Vera de Bel argues, suggest that the Dutch baby boom has trickled down from one generation to the next, leading to larger numbers of aunts, uncles, … Read more
The importance of educational expansion for longevity trends
Educational expansion has contributed to increasing the average lifespan and reducing its variability. As Jesús-Daniel Zazueta-Borboa, Ugofilippo Basellini and Fanny Janssen show for England & Wales, Finland, and Italy (Turin) … Read more
Silver splits and older adults’ mental health in Europe: the role of children
The emotional consequences of “silver splits” (at age 50 years or over) depend on one’s ties with adult children. When these ties are close, Lisa Jessee and Deborah Carr observe, … Read more
Female early marriage and gendered fertility choices in Pakistan
Using four Pakistan Demographic and Health surveys Rashid Javed, Mazhar Mughal and Thierry Lorey find that women married before 18 show stronger son preference and differential fertility stopping patterns. Women’s … Read more
Paris: from capital of early death during the Belle Époque (1871-1914) to a longevity champion today
Paris was once marked by high mortality. In the late 19th century, the French capital lagged significantly behind the rest of France in life expectancy. Today, it ranks among the … Read more
Strong impact of lifestyle factors on trends in socio-economic mortality inequalities
The key public health problems of smoking, alcohol and obesity are strongly socially patterned. In recent years, Fanny Janssen says, they have contributed markedly both to average educational inequality in … Read more
The health trajectories of refugees and how they differ from those of other migrants
Alessandro Ferrara investigates whether refugees arriving in Germany during the 2010s follow the same health trajectories as other migrants. He finds that, like other newcomers, refugees arrive with strong physical … Read more
First births in Britain: parental class and partnership context
Using UK birth cohorts (1940–1989), Alessandro Di Nallo shows that parental occupational class predicts whether first births occur in marriage, cohabitation, or while single – and at what ages. Despite … Read more
Formal childcare usage linked to higher second birth hazards in Belgium
Working mothers who use formal childcare for their first child are more likely to have a second, Jonas Wood says. While part of this effect reflects differences in who uses … Read more
Beyond the “demographic winter”
In Italy, as elsewhere, population ageing seems destined to create a series of daunting difficulties. However, as the new e-book edited by Daniele Vignoli and Gustavo De Santis shows, with … Read more
The kinship gap. When just a few years of difference make a difference
Rapid decline in a country’s birth and death rates creates a “kinship gap”, leaving people born just years apart with vastly different family support networks. Sha Jiang discusses the ensuing … Read more
The short-lived fertility upturn among Polish emigrants to the Netherlands
The European Union enlargements of the early 2000s were accompanied by intense emigration from the new member states. This was followed by an apparent increase in emigrants’ fertility, well above … Read more
Immigrants’ cultural identity and employment chances in Italy
Drawing on data from ISTAT’s survey on the Social Condition and Integration of Foreign Citizens, Alessio Buonomo, Stefania Capecchi, Francesca Di Iorio and Salvatore Strozza examine the association between cultural … Read more
Socioeconomic inequalities and single women’s entry into parenthood in Belgium
Socioeconomic inequalities shape the ways in which people form families. Denise B. Musni and Christine Schnor show that these inequalities influence women’s likelihood of becoming a mother while single, but … Read more
Internal migration and childhood loneliness in Europe
Drawing on data from 26 European countries, Aude Bernard, Patricia McMullin, and Sergi Vidal uncover a strong association between the number of internal moves and childhood loneliness. Childhood migration and … Read more
The role of mortality in fertility transition studies
Vegard Skirbekk and Thomas Spoorenberg* advocate the combined use of fertility and mortality information, or net reproduction, when discussing fertility levels and trends, both in developing and in developed countries. … Read more
Modest changes in spousal age differences over time in sub-Saharan Africa
Using information from 144 surveys across 34 countries from 1980 to 2020, Pearl Kyei, Samuel Agyei-Mensah, John Casterline and Ayaga Bawah find that the age difference between spouses decreased by … Read more
Pace of Aging of older adults in the US and UK
Based on a longitudinal analysis of dried-bloodspot, physical-exam, and performance-test biomarkers in nearly 20,000 participants in the US Health and Retirement Study and English Longitudinal Study of Aging, Arun Balachandran … Read more
Changing unions in the MENA region
Marriage and family ties in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are undergoing profound changes. While traditions persist, young people now marry later, fewer cousin marriages occur, and family … Read more
A century of mortality crises in France and its regions
While the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted societies worldwide, its demographic toll in France was far lower than the 1918 Spanish flu epidemic or the 1911 heatwave. Florian Bonnet and Carlo-Giovanni Camarda … Read more
Does grit matter for migration? The case of South Africa 2018–2020
Michael J. White, Tyler W. Myroniuk, Carren Ginsburg, and Chantel Pheiffer examine the question of whether migrants in the South African context (2018–2020, rural-to-urban migration) have more “grit”— perseverance in … Read more
Is there a strong two-child norm among U.S. women?
For decades, the majority of Americans have reported ideal family sizes of two children, yet actual birth rates are falling well below reported ideals. Julia Behrman, Emily Marshall, and Florian … Read more
The silent rise of solitary older adults in Ghana
This qualitative study explores solitary ageing in Ghana’s Greater Accra Region. Interviews with 52 older adults from six communities revealed situations of emotional isolation, social disconnection, and poverty. Andrew Kweku … Read more
Why delaying old-age pension claiming might not be worth the risk for everyone
Lifespan is uncertain, even for well-informed individuals. Sha Jiang, Wenyun Zuo, Zhen Guo and Shripad Tuljapurkar show that this irreducible demographic risk increases with delayed pension claiming and hits male … Read more
Ten years of emergency contraception in Italy (2012-21)
Emergency contraception has been on the rise in Italy in the past 10 years, especially after recent liberalization laws. Gianpiero Dalla-Zuanna, Anna Giraldo and Marzia Loghi discuss the pros and … Read more
How internal migration affects sex-ratios in rural eastern Germany
Rural-to-urban migration within eastern Germany has overtaken east-west migration as the main driver of skewed adult sex ratios in rural areas. The shift in migration patterns, according to Nico Stawarz, … Read more
Mental disorder and (reduced) fertility in Norway
Several countries have seen recent increases in the prevalence of mental disorders. Has this contributed to reduced fertility? A Norwegian register-based analysis shows negative associations between mental disorders and birth … Read more
The growing role of ART in fertility rates in Norway
Assisted reproductive technology (ART) is playing an increasingly important role in the realization of childbearing intentions in advanced societies. While ART is more accessible than ever, its usage varies across … Read more
Depression is rising in China
Depressive symptoms are on the increase in China, both over the life course and across cohorts. As Tingshuai Ge, Frans Johannes van Leeuwen, Quanbao Jiang and Liliya Leopold indicate, disparities … Read more
Divergent pathways into adulthood in the Global South
Young people in the Global South are following increasingly diverse and ever-changing paths to adulthood. Yet, inequalities persist. Shelley Clark and Khandys Agnant show that despite impressive gains in female … Read more
What we know about child protective services in the Global North
All over the world, child protective services have a duty to deal with cases of child maltreatment. However, even confining research to the Global North, better equipped, in principle, for … Read more
Cohabitation and mortality in Sweden: does living with a non-marital partner extend life?
Married individuals tend to live longer, but what about cohabiters? Using data from the Swedish registry, Jesper Lindmarker, Martin Kolk and Sven Drefahl find that cohabitation reduces the risk of … Read more
Young immigrants adapt to Swedish childbearing norms
Do immigrants have more children than people who were born in their destination country? Does immigrant childbearing behaviour adapt towards destination childbearing norms? In a new case study, Ben Wilson … Read more
Prevalence of young children in polygynous households in sub-Saharan Africa
Polygynous unions are on the decline in sub-Saharan Africa, although uncertainty surrounding the prevalence and characteristics of children in these households remains. Emily Treleaven and Emma Banchoff find that the … Read more
Marriage market restrictions and immigrant family change in Denmark
Denmark’s 2002 family reunification policy required foreign spouses to be 24+ and have stronger ties to Denmark than elsewhere. This reshaped union formation and fertility among immigrants, further increasing educational … Read more
Increasing health expectancies in China
The gradual increase in life expectancy and the accelerating pace of population aging pose significant challenges to economies, health systems, and healthcare infrastructure all over the world and, as Yu … Read more
Women’s empowerment and contraception in low- and middle-income countries
Comprehensive contraceptive transition theory, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy and Zeba Sathar argue, must prioritize women’s agency and gender roles, particularly the ability of women and girls to make independent contraceptive choices, … Read more
America struggles with birthright citizenship
In the United States, birthright citizenship is a constitutional right that dates back to 1868. However, following President Trump’s recently issued executive order, the new administration is seeking to deny … Read more
White immigrants to the U.S. are no longer what they used to be…
In the U.S., white immigrants constitute nowadays almost 20% of total immigrants, but their origins of have changed considerably over time, with a minority coming from western Europe and most … Read more
What is fair in parenthood? Parents’ view of the division of labor
The transition to parenthood in Germany often results in a more gendered labor division, with women reducing paid work and increasing housework. Maria Hornung and Chiara L. Comolli examine how … Read more
From deficit to excess: mortality in Uruguay during the COVID-19 pandemic
In 2020, Latin America became the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the number of deaths increased dramatically. Meanwhile, Uruguay experienced lower mortality levels than the previous year despite a … Read more
The effect of two billion more people
Richard Grossman joins the ongoing N-IUSSP debate on the sustainability of current and predicted population growth. He takes up several of the arguments that make David Lam moderately optimistic about … Read more
Are population policies still relevant in an era of climate change?
Climate change is caused much more by generalized pursuit of throughput growth and the consumption patterns of the wealthy than by population growth. Structural changes would be needed in global … Read more
Caring for ageing parents reduces fertility intentions in Australia
Ester Lazzari and Valeria Zurla examine how taking on the role of caregiver for a parent influences the expectation to have children. Using prospective data from the Australian HILDA survey, … Read more
Today’s high paternal ages at childbirth are not exceptionally high
Recently, mean paternal ages at childbirth have risen sharply. This has alarmed researchers from a wide range of fields as offspring of older fathers have higher health risks. However, existing … Read more
Intimate partner violence and low birth weight in Colombia
Stefania Molina’s research reveals that, in Colombia, separated and cohabiting mothers experience higher levels of intimate partner violence during pregnancy than married mothers. Disparities in low birth weight across partnership … Read more
Heterogeneity in realization of short-term fertility intentions across Europe
The realization of fertility intentions varies greatly across Europe. Zsolt Spéder and Lajos Bálint find that labour market stability, low inflation, strong welfare state involvement, and cultural attitudes emphasizing the … Read more
Are grandparents happier? Family ties and depression in later life
Are grandchildren beneficial to mental health in old age? Using advanced statistical techniques and data from 160,000 individuals across Europe, Elisa Brini and Francesca Zanasi challenge this common belief: family … Read more
Lessons from Poland’s pro-natalist “Family 500+” program
Poland’s ambitious “Family 500+” program offered substantial monthly payment to families with children. While the program modestly increased overall fertility in the short-term, its effects varied significantly by age and … Read more
Slow growth of the U.S. unauthorized foreign-born population during the 2010s
Despite a large number of unauthorized immigrants entering the United States across the U.S.-Mexico border, the size of the undocumented foreign-born population remained almost constant at around 11 million between … Read more
Concentration of reproduction in developing countries
Thomas Spoorenberg* updates earlier studies on the increased concentration of reproduction as fertility declines, a trend that is now also apparent in developing countries. When discussing population trends, demographers often … Read more
How will two billion more people affect food, water, energy, and CO2?
David Lam looks at the resource impact of the projected 2.1 billion increase in world population by 2084. He concludes that population change will increase demand for food and water, … Read more
America’s single-parent households and missing fathers
America leads the world in single-parent household rates, with the large majority of those households missing a father. Despite the public’s recognition of the importance of two-parent households for children … Read more
Internal migration does not shape rural and urban population structure
Internal migration profiles are heavily delineated by age and sex, but Ashira Menashe-Oren and Philippe Bocquier find that this has little effect on age and sex structures of rural and … Read more
Fertility transitions in the Global South: do preferences matter?
Fertility transitions in low- and middle-income countries are driven by changes in both preferences for smaller families and their implementation. Claims of an overwhelming dominance of either changing demand or … Read more
Child care in America
America is facing a child care crisis: care services are costly and scarce and fail to meet the needs of families. The majority of U.S. voters, Joseph Chamie opines, feel … Read more
Stagnating mortality convergence across European regions in recent years
While mortality is low in Europe, progress is slowing down and regional convergence, once notable, may have come to a halt. Markus Sauerberg, Florian Bonnet, Carlo-Giovanni Camarda, and Pavel Grigoriev … Read more
Infant mortality after an unintended birth
There is a longstanding interest in understanding whether children born following unplanned pregnancy could be at higher risk of negative health outcomes, including early life mortality. Using Demographic and Health … Read more
Family planning and children’s development in urban Malawi (2016-2018)
In Malawi, in a trial carried out between 2016 and 2018, children grew taller and exhibited more rapid cognitive development when their mothers’ access to family planning and reproductive health … Read more
Rising childlessness in Korea: marriage postponement and rising education
Childlessness in Korea is rising due to delayed marriage, increasing singleness and a growing share of childless unions. Misun Lee and Kryštof Zeman show that while more years in education … Read more