Trends in living arrangements in Europe: Convergence or divergence?

This article uses data from the Labour Force Surveys to examine trends in the living arrangements of European men and women aged 20 to 75 between 1987 and 2002. Some trends, like the decline in mean household size and the increase in living as a lone mother have occurred all across Europe. Other trends have been more pronounced or have even been limited to specific parts of Europe. In combination, it appears that the differences in living arrangements across Europe might have grown larger in the last fifteen to twenty years. Large differences in living arrangements remain along geographical divides.cross-national differences, Europe, gender differences, Labour Force Survey, living arrangements, second demographic transition, trends

Changes in family size intentions across young adulthood: a life-course perspective

Recent years have witnessed a resurgence in the interest in family size intentions and ideals in developed societies, partially stemming from the idea that realized fertility in these societies is lower than intended fertility. This paper addresses the question of the stability of family size intentions. Based on Heckhausen’s life-span theory of control, it is hypothesized that young adults’ family size intentions are likely to change as a result of their experiences in the family and occupational life domains. To study this issue, data are used from a Dutch panel survey in which respondents are questioned on their family size intentions six times over the course of 18 years. The results show that family size intentions are not stable, but are adjusted as people age. On average, the adjustment is downward, but some people do not adjust their intentions or even adjust them upwards. Much of this difference in age patterns can be explained by changes in the partner, educational, and occupational careers of young adults. Not finding a suitable partner and pursuing a career—for women—are important factors. But also the timing of the fertility career itself is of major importance. If respondents postpone having children until their thirties, they are much more likely to adjust their intentions downwards than if they start their childbearing career earlier.Les intentions et les idéaux en matière de taille de famille ont connu un regain d’intérêt dans les sociétés développées au cours des années récentes, en partie sur la base du constat que la fécondité réalisée était plus basse que la fécondité souhaitée. Cet article s’intéresse à la question de savoir si les intentions en matière de fécondité sont stables ou pas. A partir du “life-span theory of control” de Heckhausen, l’hypothèse émise est celle d’un changement des intentions des jeunes adultes en matière de taille de famille en fonction de leurs expériences dans les domaines de la famille et de la vie professionnelle. Les données exploitées sont celles d’un panel Néerlandais au sein duquel les sujets ont été interrogés sur leurs intentions en matière de taille de famille à 6 reprises sur une période de 18 ans. Les résultats indiquent que les intentions ne sont pas stables, et qu’elles sont ajustées au fur et à mesure que l’âge avance. En moyenne, l’ajustement se fait à la baisse, mais certaines personnes ne varient pas, et d’autres ajustent à la hausse. Beaucoup de ces différences d’évolution avec l’âge peuvent être expliquées par des changements dans l’histoire des unions, le parcours éducatif et les carrières professionnelles des jeunes adultes. Ne pas réussir à trouver un partenaire et poursuivre une carrière professionnelle—pour les femmes—sont des facteurs importants. Le calendrier des naissances est également d’une importance capitale. Les sujets qui reportent la procréation jusqu’à la trentaine ont une probabilité beaucoup plus forte d’ajuster leurs intentions à la baisse que ceux qui débutent plus tôt

The influence of partner relationship quality on fertility

This study examines whether partner relationship quality influences fertility, and if so, in which direction and which aspects of relationship quality are relevant. Competing hypotheses are tested. One hypothesis assumes that higher relationship quality leads to higher rates of childbearing, as a high-quality relationship offers the most favourable environment to raise children. An opposite hypothesis expects that lower relationship quality leads to higher rates of childbearing, as couples might have children in order to improve their relationship. Hazard analyses are performed using three waves of the Panel Study on Social Integration in the Netherlands. Findings indicate that positive as well as negative interaction between partners has a negative effect on first- and higher-order birth rates. This suggests that couples are most likely to have children if they do not have too much negative interaction, but neither interact in a very positive way. Value consensus negatively influences higher-order birth rates.Cette étude examine l’influence de la qualité de la relation avec le partenaire sur la fécondité, et cherche à identifier les aspects de la relation les plus pertinents par rapport à cette question. Différentes hypothèses sont explorées. La première postule que plus la qualité de la relation est bonne, plus la fécondité est élevée, car une relation de bonne qualité offre le contexte le plus favorable pour élever des enfants. A l’opposé, une deuxième hypothèse postule que plus la qualité de la relation est mauvaise, plus la fécondité est élevée, car les couples pourraient avoir des enfants pour améliorer leur relation. Des modèles de durée sont utilisés pour analyser les trois vagues du Panel d’Etude de l’Intégration Sociale aux Pays-Bas. Il apparaît que les interactions positives, de même que les interactions négatives entre partenaires ont une influence négative sur les naissances de rang 1 et sur les suivantes. Ce résultat suggère que les couples ont le plus de chances d’avoir des enfants s’ils ont des interactions qui ne sont ni trop bonnes, ni trop mauvaises. L’accord entre partenaires au niveau du système de valeurs influence de façon négative les naissances de rang supérieur

Living conditions during childhood and survival in later life: study design and first results

'Während der letzten Jahrzehnte ist der Lebensweg als Annäherung zu menschlichem Überleben ein zentrales Thema in der Epidemiologie und Demographie geworden. Obwohl theoretisch eine vorausblickende Studie zu Geburtenkohorten die angemessenste Forschungskonzeption für diese Art von Studien ist, haben Probleme mit Daten diesen Ansatz praktisch undurchführbar gemacht. In dem Beitrag präsentieren die Verfasser den Hauptentwurf eines Projektes, in dem die Sie eine voraussichtliche Kohortenkonzeption für historische Populationen benutzen. Dieses Projekt basiert auf einem historischen Datenset für drei niederländische Provinzen und erstreckt sich über einen Zeitraum von Mitte des neunzehnten Jahrhunderts bis zum frühen einundzwanzigsten Jahrhundert. Die Studie legt den Fokus insbesondere auf die Einflüsse von drei spezifischen Bedingungen auf das Überleben während des Säuglingsalter und der Kindheit bis zum Erwachsenenalter und hohem Alter: die sozio-ökonomische Bedingung der Familie, die Komposition und Struktur der Familie und die physikalische Umgebung, in der Kinder den ersten Teil ihres Lebens verbringen. Die Verfasser skizzieren kurz den theoretischen Hintergrund ihrer Studie, diskutieren die Strategie der Datensammlung und das Forschungsgebiet und präsentieren die ersten Ergebnisse einer Analyse eines Teils des Datensets, der kürzlich zugänglich wurde.' (Autorenreferat)'During the last decades, the life course approach to human survival has become a central topic in epidemiology and demography. Although in theory a prospective birth cohort study is the most appropriate research design for this kind of study, data problems have made this approach practically unfeasable. In their paper the author's present the main outlines of a project in which they use a prospective cohort design for a historical population. The project is based on a historical data-set for three provinces in the Netherlands, covering a time period from the mid-nineteenth to the early twenty-first century. Their study focuses in particular on the impact on survival to adulthood and old age of three specific conditions during infancy and childhood: the socio-economic condition of the family, the composition and structure of the family and the physical environment in which children spent the first part of their life. The author's briefly sketch the theoretical backgrounds of their study, discuss the data collection strategy and the study area, and present the first results of an analysis of a part of the data-set that recently became available.' (author's abstract

Does the Survey Mode Affect the Association Between Subjective Well-being and its Determinants? An Experimental Comparison Between Face-to-Face and Web Mode

Subjective well-being research increasingly uses web surveys to understand how subjective well-being indicators are related to other concepts of interest. Although we know that mean scores on these indicators may differ between modes, we know little about whether a move to web will influence the conclusions we draw about our conceptual models. This study uses data from a unique mixed-mode survey collected in Croatia and Germany as part of the Generations and Gender Programme to examine whether the relationships between a range of subjective well-being indicators and a set of objective and subjective determinants differ between respondents answering these questions in face-to-face or web mode. Although respondents report lower subjective well-being in web than in face-to-face mode, the relationships between these variables and a range of objective and subjective indicators are relatively stable across modes. This suggests that substantive conclusions about antecedents of subjective well-being do not depend on whether data are collected via a face-to-face interview or through web survey

Актуальні проблеми конституційно-правового регулювання територіального устрою України та деяких європейських країн

Аналізуються деякі аспекти законодавчого закріплення основ територіального устрою України та окремих європейських країн. Автором викладені пропозиції щодо вдосконалення статті 133 Конституції України.Анализируются некоторые аспекты законодательного регулирования основ терри­ториального устройства Украины и отдельных европейских государств. Автором изложены предложения по усовершенствованию статьи 133 Конституции Украины.The author analyzed some aspects of legislative secure the territorial division of Ukraine and some Europeans countries. The author gives the recommendations to improve the 133 article of Constitutional Ukraine

Socio-Economic Differences in the Prevalence of Single Motherhood in North America and Europe

The study focuses on understanding the association between parental socio-economic status (SES) and the likelihood of women experiencing a first birth while single, and identifying societal factors that influence this association in 18 North American and European societies. Previous research has shown that single motherhood occurs disproportionately among those from with lower a lower parental SES. The study assesses whether this is caused by parental SES differences in the risk of single women experiencing a first conception leading to a live birth or by parental SES differences in how likely women are to enter a union during pregnancy. Additionally, an assessment is made of whether cross-national differences in these associations can be explained by a country’s access to family planning, norms regarding family formation, and economic inequality. Across countries, a negative gradient of parental SES was found on the likelihood of single women to experience a first pregnancy. The negative gradient was stronger in countries with better access to family planning. In some countries, the negative gradient of parental SES was aggravated during pregnancy because women from lower parental SES were less likely to enter a union. This was mostly found in societies with less conservative norms regarding marriage. The results suggest that certain developments in Western societies may increase socio-economic differentials in family demography

Changes in choice of spouse as an indicator of a society in a state of transition: Woerden, 1830-1930

Der Prozeß der Modernisierung hat auch in sozialer Hinsicht eine offene Gesellschaft geschaffen. Ein Indikator dafür ist das Maß an äußerer Übereinstimmung zwischen Ehepartnern. Die These, daß die Modernisierung der Gesellschaft auch eine freiere und weniger pragmatische Partnerwahl begünstigt, wird überprüft. Auf der Quellengrundlage der eingetragenen Ehen, die in der niederländischen Stadt Woerden von 1830 - 1930 geschlossen wurden, werden der Wandel in der sozialen, altersmäßigen und religiösen Übereinstimmung bei der Partnerwahl untersucht. Dabei werden sechs soziale Klassen zwischen 'Ungelernte Arbeiter' und 'Oberklasse' sowie die Religionen römisch-katholisch, calvinistisch und lutheranisch unterschieden. Die sozialen, religiösen und Altersfaktoren werden in einem Beziehungszusammenhang betrachtet. Es zeigt sich, daß die Alters- und soziale Klassenübereinstimmung abnehmen, während die religiöse Übereinstimmung zunimmt. (prf)'The 19th and 20th centuries have been an era characterised by social modernisation spurred on primarily by economic developments. The process of modernisation also had an impact on interpersonal relationships and resulted in a more open society. The degree of homogamy between husbands and wives is an important indicator for societal openness, the theory being that the changes which occurred during this period enabled people to be freer and less pragmatic when choosing a spouse. This paper examines this thesis by studying changes in social class, age- and religious homogamy based on marriage data for the town of Woerden during the period 1830-1930. In contrast to other studies which examined the degree of homogamy of each of these variables in isolation, our aim was to reveal the interrelationship between the factors which influenced a person's choice of spouse, using log-linear analyses. The results show that a unidimensional model positing a trend towards increasing openness can be misleading. A decline in social class homogamy and an increase in age homogamy - indicators which would suggest that people had more freedom when it came to choosing a spouse - were found to go hand in hand with an increase in religious homogamy - indicative of a society in the ever-tightening grip of religion.' (author's abstract