Trends in Distance Between Non-resident Parents and Minor Children Following Separation:Analysis of the Belgian Case, 1992–2018

Geographic distance between a child and their non-resident parent is a key aspect of the reorganization of the family following parental separation. The increasingly equal involvement of both parents in the upbringing of their children is expected to translate into increasing geographic proximity between children and non-resident parents. So far, there has been no evidence about the time trends in geographical distances between minor children and non-resident parents outside of the Swedish context. In this study, we investigate these trends across Belgian separation cohorts from 1992 to 2018 and the extent to which they differ according to parental socioeconomic status and child’s age at separation. Overall, we observed a very small decrease in distance between children and their non-resident fathers and a somewhat larger decrease for non-resident mothers. The distance increased for very young children (0–2 years) and children with low-educated fathers. These findings point to inequalities in certain parent–child dyads.</p

Remain, leave, or return? Mothers’ location continuity after separation in Belgium

Christine Schnor acknowledges support from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (FAMILYTIES project: Grant Agreement No. 740113 (2017-2022), PI Clara H. Mulder, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen; GENDERBALL project: Grant No. 312290 (2013-2017), PI Jan Van Bavel, KU Leuven). Júlia Mikolai acknowledges support from the Economic and Social Research Council (PartnerLife project; Grant No.: ES/L01663X/1 (2014-2017), PI: Hill Kulu, University of St Andrews) under the Open Research Area (ORA) Plus scheme.BACKGROUND Partnership dissolution can mark an extended period of residential instability for mothers and their children. Location continuity, i.e., the ability to stay in or return to the same neighbourhood after separation, is essential to reduce the negative consequences of separation. OBJECTIVE We focus on mothers’ post-separation location continuity in the three years following separation and study the role of socioeconomic resources and local ties (to a home, neighbourhood, and region) in remaining in or returning to their pre-separation neighbourhood. METHODS Using linked Belgian Census (2001) and register data (2001–2006), we estimate multinomial logistic regression models (N = 25,802). Based on the occurrence, frequency, and destination of moves, we distinguish between high, moderate, and low degrees of location continuity. We also study the probability of remaining in, leaving, or returning to the pre-separation neighbourhood. RESULTS Mothers who live at their place of birth (a measure of local ties) tend to stay in or return to their pre-separation neighbourhood or region; if they have more socioeconomic resources they are more likely to remain in the family home. Mothers from disadvantaged backgrounds move further and more often. CONCLUSION If separated mothers lack socioeconomic resources and local ties, they are less likely to maintain location continuity. Policy programmes should target these women in order to provide better opportunities for separated mothers and their children. CONTRIBUTION We introduce the concept of post-separation location continuity and account for separation-induced as well as post-separation residential changes in the first three years after separation.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Moving Closer for the Grandchild? Fertility and the Geographical Proximity of a Mother and Her Adult Daughter in a Dynamic Perspective

Recent research has analyzed how the geographical distance between moth­ers and adult daugh­ters influ­enced the daugh­ters’ fer­til­ity tran­si­tions. The inverse rela­tion­ship has received less atten­tion: that is, whether a daugh­ter’s fer­til­ity—her preg­nan­cies and the ages and num­ber of her chil­dren—is affected by her geo­graph­i­cal prox­im­ity to her mother. The cur­rent study helps to close this gap by con­sid­er­ing moves by either adult daugh­ters or moth­ers that lead them to live nearby again. We use Bel­gian reg­is­ter data on a cohort of 16,742 first­born girls aged 15 at the begin­ning of 1991 and their moth­ers who lived apart at least once dur­ing the observed period (1991–2015). Estimating event-his­tory mod­els for recur­rent events, we ana­lyzed whether an adult daugh­ter’s preg­nan­cies and the ages and num­ber of her chil­dren affected the like­li­hood that she was again liv­ing close to her mother and, if so, whether the daugh­ter’s or the mother’s move enabled this close liv­ing arrange­ment. The results show that daugh­ters were more likely to move closer to their moth­ers dur­ing their first preg­nancy and that moth­ers were more likely to move closer to their daugh­ters when the daugh­ters’ children were older than 2.5 years. This study con­trib­utes to the grow­ing lit­er­a­ture inves-ti­gat­ing how fam­ily ties shape (im)mobil­ity.</p

The increase in non-marital childbearing and its link to educational expansion

The rise in non-marital childbearing has coincided with educational expansion, although non- marital childbirths are more common among the low-educated population. This article examines how changes in the education-specific rates of non-marital childbearing and in the educational distribution of parents contributed to increased nonmarital childbearing among Finnish first-time parents over the 1970–2009 period. Using register data and a decomposition approach, we find that the increase in non-marital first-time births was driven mainly by the large population of secondary-educated women and men and by the growing group of lower tertiary-educated women. The lowest-educated population continued to have the highest proportion of non-marital first-time childbearing, but their overall contribution was small due to diminishing group size. The highest-educated population increased its contribution to non-marital childbearing but still has the lowest non-marital childbearing rates. We conclude that the medium-educated population makes important contributions to family changes and merits increased scholarly attention.</p

Residential choice following separation and widowhood in middle and later life in Belgium and Sweden

It is well‐documented that residential moves are connected to life events such as separation or widowhood. However, much less is known about the residential choices that follow these events in middle and later life (between ages 50 and 70) and how the location of family members outside the household relates to these choices. Comparing the cases of Belgium and Sweden, this paper addresses (i) the extent to which (im)mobility after separation or widowhood is associated with the presence of older parents and adult children nearby; (ii) the extent to which the choice of destination is associated with the location of older parents and adult children for those separated, widowed, and married individuals who moved, and (iii) how these patterns vary among men and women. We answer these questions employing logistic regression models and discrete‐choice models fitted to Belgian and Swedish register data from 2012 to 2014. The results show unique patterns of mobility around separation and widowhood which differ from those of continuously married individuals. Separated and widowed men and women in both countries are generally more likely to make a move towards their parents than continuously married ones. Widowhood is also associated with an increased propensity for a move towards one's children. In contrast, separation is associated with a lower propensity for moving towards one's children, especially among menEuropean Research Council, Grant/Award Number: 740113Swedish Research Council, Grant/Award Number: 2019‐00245Strategic Research Council at the Academy of Finland, Grant/Award Number: 345183Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare, Grant/Award Number: 2016‐07115Fond de la Recherche Scientifique de Belgique; Walloon Regio

Stability in children’s residential arrangements and distance to nonresident parents in the 10 years after parental separation

BACKGROUND: Existing studies investigating children’s living arrangements after parental separation and geographic distance to the nonresident parent focus primarily on the situation shortly after separation. Little is known about how children’s residence with and distance to parents evolve with time elapsed since separation. OBJECTIVE: We investigate for the first 10 years following parental separation with which parent the child lives and how far the child lives from the nonresident parent for Belgian children whose parents separated in their early childhood (0 to 6 years). METHODS: Data from Demobel (Belgian register-based data; 2010–2020) was analyzed by means of descriptive analysis, sequence index plots, and Kaplan–Meier survival functions. RESULTS: For every 10 children who initially registered with their mother (85%), 9.2 stayed registered with their mother in the long term. Geographical distance to the father increased with time elapsed since separation. Children who were initially registered with their father (15%) were more likely to change residency to their mother. On average, the distance between nonresident mothers and their children did not increase. CONCLUSIONS: Residential arrangements following separation were mostly stable, even though a switch in the resident parent was not uncommon, especially if the child was initially registered with the father. Compared to residential arrangements, distance to the nonresident parent was more often subject to change. CONTRIBUTION: By adopting a longitudinal perspective on the residential arrangements of children following parental separation in early childhood, we were able to assess how the initial arrangements – the typical focus of previous studies – change with time elapsed since separation

Separation and elevated residential mobility : a cross-country comparison

PartnerLife was supported by a grant from the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO, Grant No. 464-13-148), the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, Grant No. WA 1502/6-1), and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC, Grant No. ES/L01663X/1) in the Open Research Area Plus scheme. Clara H. Mulder’s and Christine Schnor’s contribution was also supported by the FamilyTies project, which has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Grant Agreement No 740113). Hill Kulu’s and Júlia Mikolai’s work was also supported by Economic and Social Research Council Grant ES/K007394/1 and carried out in the ESRC Centre for Population Change (CPC).This study investigates the magnitude and persistence of elevated post-separation residential mobility (i.e. residential instability) in five countries (Australia, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK) with similar levels of economic development, but different welfare provisions and housing markets. While many studies examine residential changes related to separation in selected individual countries, only very few have compared patterns across countries. Using longitudinal data and applying Poisson regression models, we study the risk of a move of separated men and women compared with cohabiting and married individuals. We use time since separation to distinguish between moves due to separation and moves of separated individuals. Our analysis shows that separated men and women are significantly more likely to move than cohabiting and married individuals. The risk of a residential change is the highest shortly after separation, and it decreases with duration since separation. However, the magnitude of this decline varies by country. In Belgium, mobility rates remain elevated for a long period after separation, whereas in the Netherlands, post-separation residential instability appears brief, with mobility rates declining rapidly. The results suggest that housing markets are likely to shape the residential mobility of separated individuals. In countries, where mortgages are easy to access and affordable rental properties are widespread, separated individuals can rapidly adjust their housing to new family circumstances; in contrast, in countries with limited access to homeownership and small social rental markets, separated individuals experience a prolonged period of residential instability.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe