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Families and households

Groups of people related by consanguinity or affinity (e.g. marriage). Persons who co-reside

Families and households

Children and (unequal) sharing of housework between partners in Hungary

January 23, 2023 Zsuzsanna Veroszta
Children, Europe, gender equality, Household, Hungary, woman

In addition to their childcare responsibilities, women with young children often have to do more housework, thus making an already unequal balance even more skewed. Zsuzsanna Veroszta shows that, in … Read more

Families and households

Cohabitation matters when studying breakups of couples with different migrant backgrounds

November 21, 2022 Layla Van den Berg and Dimitri Mortelmans
Belgium, Couples, Divorces, Europe, Marriage

Endogamy (partners of the same geographical origin) is said to lower the risk of marriage dissolution. However, once cohabitation is included in the analysis of Belgian (register) data, Layla Van … Read more

Families and households

The educational hypogamy puzzle in India

October 31, 2022October 31, 2022 Koyel Sarkar

Status exchange is a leading factor behind the rising share of educational hypogamy marriages in India (women marrying less educated men), says Koyel Sarkar. Lower caste women aspire to upward … Read more

Families and households

The old and the new natalism are not at odds

September 26, 2022 Laurie F. DeRose
Children, Family, Fertility, gender equality, Household

Religion has historically been a pronatalist force, but because it fosters traditional gender role attitudes, it could impede a fertility recovery stimulated by gender equity. Instead, Laurie DeRose explains how … Read more

Families and households

Looking after mum and dad: caregiving by adult only children in UK

September 19, 2022 Jenny Chanfreau and Alice Goisis
Caregiving, Children, Family, Great Britain

Adult children with siblings can share caring for ageing parents but only children face this responsibility alone. Jenny Chanfreau and Alice Goisis find that adult only children are more likely … Read more

Families and households

The mental health benefits of cohabitation and marriage in Norway

July 18, 2022 Øystein Kravdal, Jonathan Wörn and Bjørn-Atle Reme
Family, Health, Marriage, Norway

A Norwegian register analysis with control for time-constant individual characteristics shows an association between cohabitation and declining use of primary health care for mental diseases. However, the decline largely occurs … Read more

Families and households

How close to your mother? Lifetime dynamics and racial differences

March 7, 2022 HwaJung Choi, Robert Schoeni, Hongwei Xu, Adriana Reyes and Deena Thomas
Family

Spatial proximity among family members may profoundly affect people’s lives. What are the salient features of family dynamics over geographic distance? HwaJung Choi, Robert Schoeni, Hongwei Xu, Adriana Reyes, and … Read more

Families and households

Generational overlap places a heavy burden on parents in the global South

January 18, 2022January 17, 2022 Diego Alburez-Gutierrez
ageing, Children, Family, Grandparents, population ageing

Generational overlap has mainly been studied for populations in the global North, but it affects care time demands on parents worldwide. Indeed, demographic ‘sandwiching’ is more prevalent in the global … Read more

Families and households

Rent liberalization decreased age at marriage in Egypt

October 18, 2021 Ragui Assaad, Caroline Krafft and Dominique J. Rolando
Asia, Egypt, housing, Marriage

Young people’s ability to marry increasingly depends on obtaining housing and forming independent households. Ragui Assaad, Caroline Krafft, and Dominique J. Rolando show how Egypt’s 1996 rent liberalization law reversed … Read more

Families and households

Spain: a pioneer in gender-equal parental leave

September 23, 2021September 23, 2021 Teresa Jurado-Guerrero and Jacobo Muñoz-Comet
Family, gender equality, Gender issues, Household, Work

Gender equality in child care can be promoted through individual entitlements to a non-transferable and well-paid leave of equal duration for women and men. While this design is still rare … Read more

Families and households

Homogamy among high-income partners drives up family income inequality

September 6, 2021 Yifan Shen
Family, inequality, inequity, Work, world

More married couples today consist of two high-income or two low-income partners (i.e., income homogamy), which leads to greater income inequality in married-couple families. Yifan Shen shows that, all else … Read more

Families and households

Skip-generation household trends in low- and middle-income countries

June 3, 2021May 31, 2021 Zachary Zimmer and Emily Treleaven
Family, Grandparents, Household, world

Zachary Zimmer and Emily Treleaven find a growing global prevalence of households that have grandparents living with grandchildren with middle generation absent. Country-level factors, like labor force participation rates, explain … Read more

Families and households

Children of same-sex parents: an educational success story

May 21, 2021April 19, 2021 Jan Kabátek and Francisco Perales
Couples, Family, Marriage, same-sex parented families

Challenging claims of disadvantage in same-sex parented families, Jan Kabátek and Francisco Perales find that same-sex-parented children actually outperform their peers in many areas of academic achievement. Over the last … Read more

Families and households

Grandparents looking after grandchildren in England

May 21, 2021March 15, 2021 Giorgio Di Gessa, Paola Zaninotto and Karen Glaser
Family, grandchild, Grandparents, Household, Marriage, Old age

Giorgio Di Gessa, Paola Zaninotto and Karen Glaser find that, in England, most grandmothers and grandfathers provide grandchild care throughout the year to allow parents to undertake paid work. However, … Read more

Families and households

What becomes of marriage when non-marital childbearing is the norm?

March 14, 2021December 21, 2020 Ari Klængur Jónsson
Children, Europe, Marriage

Nowhere in Europe is the share of births out of marriage larger than in Iceland. Nevertheless, most Icelanders marry. In this article Ari Klængur Jónsson argues that even though the … Read more

Families and households

More siblings, less wealth in today’s Germany

March 12, 2021October 5, 2020 Philipp M. Lersch
Europe, Family, siblings, wealth

Philipp M. Lersch studies the relationship between people’s number of siblings and their economic wealth in Germany. He finds that additional siblings reduce wealth by about 38%. Parental wealth moderates … Read more

Families and households

Is support between parents and adult children reciprocal?

March 14, 2021July 20, 2020 Hans Hämäläinen and Bruno Arpino
Children, Europe, Family, germany, grandchildren, grandmother

Hans Hämäläinen and Bruno Arpino investigate short-term reciprocity of intergenerational support from the viewpoint of adult children. They consider multiple forms of support and examine whether previously received support from … Read more

Families and households

How cash support and tax relief may matter for third births in Hungary

March 12, 2021May 25, 2020 Zsolt Spéder, Lívia Murinkó and Livia Sz. Oláh
Europe, Family, Fertility

Well targeted policy measures can influence fertility even in times of intensive social and economic change. Analysing data from the Hungarian Generations and Gender Survey, Zsolt Spéder, Lívia Murinkó and … Read more

Families and households

Gender-asymmetric time allocation and divorce. A US-West Germany comparison

March 11, 2021May 4, 2020 Daniela Bellani and Gøsta Esping-Andersen
Americas, Couples, divorce, Europe, Gender issues

Examining couples in both the United States and western Germany, Daniela Bellani and Gøsta Esping-Andersen find lower divorce risks when the division of unpaid work is more balanced. This suggests … Read more

Families and households

Family planning and child health care: the Peruvian case, 1996-2000

March 11, 2021April 6, 2020 Marianna Battaglia and Nina Pallarés
Americas, Children, Health, Mortality

In 1996-2000, for the first time in Peru, surgical contraception was promoted among indigenous women, and sometimes imposed upon them. As Marianna Battaglia and Nina Pallarés show, its overall positive … Read more

Families and households

Transnational families living between Africa and Europe

March 11, 2021March 26, 2020 Valentina Mazzucato, Djamila Schans, Kim Caarls and Cris Beauchemin
Africa, Europe, Family, transnational families

International migration and family life are frequently difficult to reconcile. Valentina Mazzucato, Djamila Schans, Kim Caarls, and Cris Beauchemin focus on three cases (the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, and … Read more

Families and households

Same-sex marriages in Sweden: 20 years of change

March 11, 2021March 16, 2020 Martin Kolk and Gunnar Andersson
Children, Divorces, Europe, Family, Gender issues, homosexual marriage, Marriage

Martin Kolk and Gunnar Andersson study the evolution of same-sex marriages, childbearing and divorce in Sweden. They highlight increases in childbearing and marriage of female couples in particular, and a … Read more

Families and households

Strong family ties moderate the negative effect of family size on children’s education, in Wisconsin (USA)

March 11, 2021March 9, 2020 Ea Hoppe Blaabæk and Joseph Molitoris
Americas, Family

Recent studies have questioned whether family size negatively affects children’s educational outcomes. Based on information from the extended famil, Ea Blaabæk and Joseph Molitoris find that family size has a … Read more

Families and households

Legalizing same-sex marriages improves subjective well-being (in England and Wales)

March 11, 2021February 10, 2020 Diederik Boertien and Daniele Vignoli
Couples, homosexual marriage, Marriage, united kingdom

Legalizing same-sex marriage is as an important step toward reducing differences in well-being based on sexual orientation. For example, the subjective well-being of individuals in same-sex couples increased following legalizationin … Read more

Families and households

Do birds of a feather really flock together?

March 10, 2021January 27, 2020 Hill Kulu and Tina Hannemann
interracial, interracial marriage, united kingdom

Hill Kulu and Tina Hannemann investigated the spread of ethnic intermarriage and co-ethnic marriage across different ethnic minorities in the UK. They found specific socio-economic factors for different ethnic minorities … Read more

Families and households

In Switzerland, fertility does not rhyme with happiness

March 10, 2021November 11, 2019 Malgorzata Mikucka
Family, Fertility, Gender issues

Parenthood typically improves people’s life satisfaction, even if only in the short run. Surprisingly, instead, Malgorzata Mikucka finds that a second birth has a negative, albeit temporary, effect on Swiss … Read more

Families and households

Children, happiness and religiosity: the evidence from Israel

March 10, 2021September 23, 2019 Jona Schellekens
Asia, Children, Family, israel

Religious couples tend to have more children than secular ones, suggesting that children add more to the happiness of the former than they do to the latter. Jona Schellekens investigated … Read more

Families and households

Caregiving: there’s more than meets the eye

March 10, 2021September 2, 2019 Sarah E. Patterson and Rachel Margolis
Caregiving, Family, Health

Women are more likely to provide care to multiple family members or friends simultaneously at most ages throughout the life course except at the very oldest ages when gender differences … Read more

Families and households

Local childcare availability and dual earner fertility in Belgium

March 10, 2021June 17, 2019 Jonas Wood and Karel Neels
aeging, Europe, Family, Work

In the context of population ageing, work-family reconciliation policies potentially play an important role in supporting both fertility and parental employment. However, the evaluation of such policies remains a challenge. … Read more

Families and households

Socioeconomic disparities in Finnish children’s family life

March 10, 2021May 13, 2019 Marika Jalovaara and Gunnar Andersson
Children, Europe, Family, Fertility, inequality, Poverty

Increasing attention is directed towards the ‘diverging destinies’ of children born in different family contexts. One might expect disparities to be small in Nordic welfare states, yet in Finland, as … Read more

Families and households

In Sweden, women move to their partner’s home at union formation

March 10, 2021November 19, 2018 Maria Brandén and Karen Haandrikman
Couples, Europe, Family, Gender issues, Marriage, Migration, mobility

Women tend to adapt to their male spouse when families move. Maria Brandén and Karen Haandrikman examine whether this is also true for the moves couples make when forming a … Read more

Families and households

Stability of U.S. couples with children in a comparative perspective

March 9, 2021September 24, 2018 Katherine Michelmore and Kelly Musick
Children, Demography, Divorces, Family, Separations

Cohabitation, nonmarital childbearing, and partnership dissolution are now common in the U.S. Katherine Michelmore and Kelly Musick examine patterns of union instability among couples who have had a child together, … Read more

marriage market
Families and households

Marriage markets and assortative mating in first marriages and remarriages in the USA

March 9, 2021September 10, 2018 Zhenchao Qian and Daniel T. Lichter
Americas, Family, Marriage

Using data from the American Community Survey 2008-2014, Zhenchao Qian and Daniel T. Lichter show how assortative mating patterns are subject to local marriage market conditions.They also find that previously … Read more

Families and households

Stability of cohabiting unions in Europe

March 14, 2021July 16, 2018 Zuzana Zilincikova
Children, Europe, Family, Separations

The increasing popularity of cohabitation has opened a debate on the stability of cohabitations, and especially those in which there is a child. Zuzana Žilinčíková shows that cohabitations have a … Read more

Families and households

The myth of the sandwich generation in Brazil

March 9, 2021July 2, 2018 Maria Carolina Tomás, Everton Emanuel Campos de Lima and Bernardo Lanza Queiroz
Americas, Demography, Family, Women

Due to rapid and profound demographic changes, population age structure in Brazil has changed sharply in the past few years. Contrary to widespread belief, however, Maria Carolina Tomás, Everton Emanuel … Read more

Families and households

Facilitating family enlargement in Europe through dual parental employment

March 9, 2021May 28, 2018 Angela Greulich, Mathilde Guergoat-Larivière and Olivier Thévenon
Children, Family, Reproduction, Work

Using European panel data from 2003 to 2011 (EU-SILC), Angela Greulich, Mathilde Guergoat-Larivière and Olivier Thévenon show that dual-earner couples are more likely to have a second child than couples … Read more

Families and households

Fewer consanguineous marriages of Muslims in Israel

March 8, 2021March 25, 2018 Jona Schellekens, Guy Kenan and Ahmad Hleihel
Asia, Marriage, Women

Consanguinity has important implications for public health as it increases the risk of passing on autosomal recessive genetic disorders to the next generation. Thus, it is important that we learn … Read more

Families and households

The rights of homosexual families in Europe: the LawsAndFamilies database

March 8, 2021March 12, 2018 Arianna Caporali and Marie Digoix
Europe, Gender issues, homosexual marriage, homosexuality, Marriage, sex

Starting in the late 1980s, new laws concerning same-sex unions were passed, first in Denmark (registered partnerships in 1989) and the Netherlands (marriage in 2001), and then in several other … Read more

Families and households

Children born to a lone mother and their well-being in the UK

March 6, 2021September 25, 2017 Elena Mariani and Alice Goisis
Children, Divorces, Women

Numerous studies have looked at the relationship between family structure and child well-being. Overall, the evidence suggests that children who grow up in a household with two married biological parents, … Read more

Families and households

Sharing routine housework and desire for more children in East Asia

March 6, 2021September 21, 2017 Man-Yee Kan and Ekaterina Hertog
Asia, Family, Household, Marriage, Reproduction, Women

Low fertility levels have become a typical characteristic of industrialised countries where two distinct patterns are observed. A number of countries, especially in southern Europe and East Asia, have persistently … Read more

Families and households

Family planning in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya

March 6, 2021July 17, 2017 Donatien Beguy, Alex C. Ezeh, Blessing U. Mberu and Jacques B.O. Emina
Africa, Children, Family, Fertility, Gender issues, Health, Women

In Kenya, rapid population growth has occurred amidst poor urban governance and limited employment opportunities, leading to widespread urban poverty that is concentrated in informal settlements or slums. In Nairobi, … Read more

Families and households

The rise of divorce, separation, and cohabitation in the Philippines

March 6, 2021July 10, 2017 Jeofrey B. Abalos
Asia, Divorces, Marriage, Separations

“What God has put together let no man put asunder”. This biblical quote is frequently heard among Filipinos, particularly among the older generations, to discourage young people from leaving an … Read more

Families and households

Non-cohabiting relationships: mainly a transitional situation

March 5, 2021May 29, 2017 Arnaud Régnier-Loilier
Couples, Separations

Formerly synonymous with marriage, cohabitation has become a lasting form of union in France and this country is now among those where the practice is most widespread (Prioux 2009).Moreover, the … Read more

Families and households

Marriage then the baby carriage?

March 14, 2021March 6, 2017 Jennifer A. Holland
Europe, Marriage, Reproduction, Women

The mid-20th-century was a Golden Age of marriage in Europe and the United States. People married early, usually in their early-to-mid-20s, and often, with over 90% of people marrying at … Read more

Families and households

How does parental separation affect children’s day-to-day life?

March 4, 2021December 19, 2016 Marion Leturcq and Lidia Panico
Children, Education, Poverty, Separations

Parental separation increases children’s risk of poverty The proportion of children experiencing parental divorce or separation has increased across Western countries. As a result, in 2014 about 16% of children … Read more

Families and households

Bilan de dix ans de mariage universel en Espagne (2005-2014)

March 4, 2021September 19, 2016 Alberto Capote
Family, Gender issues, homosexual marriage, homosexuality, Marriage

En 2005, l’Espagne est devenue le troisième pays de l’Union Européenne à légaliser le mariage pour les personnes du même sexe, après les Pays Bas en 2001 et la Belgique … Read more

Families and households

The emergence of the one-child family in India

March 4, 2021September 5, 2016 Alaka Basu and Sonalde Desai
Asia, Children, Reproduction

The whole world knows and talks about the “one-child” phenomenon in China. Most of this discussion is tied to analyses of the one-child policy instituted by the Chinese government in … Read more

Families and households

The drivers of children’s outcomes in Australia

March 4, 2021July 25, 2016 Rasheda Khanam
Children, Demography, Oceania

Childhood has gained renewed attention from academics, researchers and policy makers, as evidence shows that this stage of life deeply affects future educational achievements and labour market success (Blanden, Gregg … Read more

Families and households

In France, second unions now more resilient than first

March 4, 2021July 18, 2016 Eva Beaujouan
Europe, Marriage, Separations

If at first you don’t succeed … The first union used to be the one that would last “until death do us part”. The transformation in partnership behaviour emerging in … Read more

Families and households

Better education has become a stabilizer of marriages in Taiwan

March 4, 2021July 11, 2016 Yen-hsin Alice Cheng
Asia, Children, Education, Marriage, Separations

While divorce is usually lower in Asian than in Western societies, a drastic rise in crude divorce rates has been reported in many East Asian countries in the recent past … Read more

Families and households

Which adult children live with their elderly parents in China?

March 4, 2021July 4, 2016 Sen Ma and Fangqi Wen
Asia, Children, Family, Marriage, Work

Co-residence between elderly parents and independent, married adult children is a common phenomenon in East Asian societies. For example, according to the 2005 China Inter-Census Survey data, two thirds of … Read more

Families and households

On marriage, happiness, and gender specialization of work

September 16, 2021June 27, 2016 Malgorzata Mikucka
Education, Gender issues, Marriage, Work

The married are happier and more satisfied with their lives than the unmarried (Verbakel, 2012; Gove et al., 1990). Yet, as divorce and cohabitation increase, we may be facing a … Read more

Families and households

The changing American age curve of divorce

March 4, 2021April 26, 2016 Lowell L. Hargens
Americas, Divorces, Family, Household, Separations

The incidence of divorce, like the incidence of many other demographic phenomena, varies greatly across the life course. Divorce is most prevalent during young adulthood and relatively infrequent among the … Read more

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Families and households

Welcome to N-IUSSP

February 24, 2021October 29, 2015 Anastasia Gage
Demography

Dear Members and Friends of IUSSP, Welcome to N-IUSSP! It is my pleasure to introduce you to the new official press service of the International Union for the Scientific Study … Read more

Families and households

The changing meaning of cohabitation in Europe and North America. Signs of convergence?

February 23, 2021July 14, 2015 Roberto Impicciatore, Maria Sironi and Paola Di Giulio
Americas, Couples, Europe, Gender issues, Household

The diffusion of cohabitation during the last decades is one of the most striking aspects of wider social changes that have taken place throughout the industrialized world. Over time, the meaning … Read more

Families and households

The decline of family size ideals and the Great Recession in Europe

February 23, 2021July 13, 2015 Maria Rita Testa
Children, Europe, Family, Fertility, Reproduction

The number of children individuals would like to have, or would have liked to have had, also known as personal ideal family size, has been stable in the EU-15 as … Read more

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  • Health before and after union dissolution among mothers, fathers and children
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