Between self, family and society:Syrian male perspectives on intimate partner relationship negotiation in The Netherlands

This paper seeks to disentangle gendered perspectives on intimate partner relationships after forced migration. It targets lived experiences of young Syrian men in the Netherlands (18-35 years old) and explores the extent to which attitudes, traditions and behaviours in relation to gender- and partner roles are contested, re-produced or transformed in the context of societal change. The study employs a qualitative life course perspective, using interdisciplinary social theory to flesh out the interplay of relevant micro- and macro processes in which intimate partner relationship attitudes, traditions and behaviours are defined. We draw from narrative interviews, themed around core life course principles such as agency, linked lives, and time and place, and use narrative analyses. The paper offers two main contributions. First, we demonstrate that intimate partner relationship negotiation after forced migration is a nuanced, complex and ambiguous process, conditioned by intersections of self, family and society, personal biographies and culturally defined agentic behavior. Hence, the paper stimulates incorporating interdisciplinary social theory in migration research to more adequately capture intercultural experiences of migrants. Second, by scrutinising divergent experiences and strategies, we challenge one-sided, static accounts of immigrant men, and emphasise respondents are active agents that negotiate their contextual positions in the Netherlands as intimate partners, husband and fathers

Ideal ages for family formation among immigrants in Europe

This paper investigates ideal ages for marriage and parenthood among immigrants from over 160 countries origins living in 25 European countries. Ideals regarding the timing of family formation are indicative of how individuals perceive the family life course and provide insight into family-life aspirations and the meaning attached to these transitions. Using data from the European Social Survey (Round 3, 2006; N = 6,330) and a cross-classified multilevel modeling approach, we investigate associations between the influences of the dominant family formation timing patterns in countries of origin and settlement, individual-level characteristics, and ideal ages. We make innovative use of a standard demographic measure, the singulate mean age of marriage, to measure family formation patterns. Results suggests that residential context influences are associated with the timing ideals of all migrants, but origin influences seem to be associated with the ideals of only the most recent migrant

The Role of Welfare in Locational Choices:Modelling Intra‐European Migration Decisions Across the Life‐Course

In this study, we add to the literature by investigating the role of welfare states in intra‐European migration decisions between 25 countries (2003‐2008). Distinguishing between three welfare programmes (unemployment, family and old‐age benefits) we tested whether social expenditure on each of these arrangements particularly influenced locational choices of individuals within the age groups covered by the respective welfare policy. Findings from a conditional logit model showed a positive impact of spending on family benefits on the locational choices of young adults moving together with children, and of spending on old‐age benefits on the locational choices of individuals close to or above retirement age. In contrast, a negative impact of unemployment spending was found on locational choices in general, and those of working‐age adults in particular. Our results highlight the importance of further disentangling the often‐used general welfare spending measure when studying the link between welfare and migration

Economic Precariousness and the Transition to Parenthood:A Dynamic and Multidimensional Approach

Economic precariousness has taken on a central role in explanations of the postponement of childbearing in developed societies. However, most studies conceptualize and operationalize precariousness as being static and one-dimensional, which provides only a partial perspective on the links between precariousness and fertility. In this paper, we study precariousness as a dynamic and multidimensional concept, distinguishing between past and current precariousness as well as between precariousness relating to income and to employment. Analyses are based on Dutch full-population register data. We select all inhabitants of the Netherlands who left education in 2006 and follow them until 2018. Event history analyses show that current and past income and employment precariousness all have independent negative effects on the first birth rate for men. Current and past employment precariousness and past income precariousness also reduce the first birth rate for women, but current income precariousness increases women’s probability of first conception. When precariousness is both persistent and multidimensional, it is associated with a threefold decrease in the monthly probability of conceiving a first child for men and almost a halving of the probability for women. Our analyses show the need for going beyond static and one-dimensional analyses in order to understand how economic precariousness may affect fertility behaviour

Temporary Employment and Family Formation:An Income or Insecurity Effect?

Recent studies show that temporary workers postpone family formation transitions, but it remains unclear whether this effect is due to the lower income or the stronger perceptions of job insecurity that go with a temporary contract. To address this question, we link data from a large-scale survey among Dutch employees to longitudinal population register data on marriage and first births. Logistic regression models estimate the effects of temporary employment on marriage and first birth, and mediation analyses assess to what extent these effects are explained by income and perceptions of job insecurity. Results show that temporarily employed women delay first birth. There is also some evidence that temporarily employed men postpone marriage and first birth. These effects are partly explained by income, which increases marriage and first birth rates among men and women alike. Perceptions of job insecurity generally had little effect on family formation, although higher marriage rates were found among women who experienced affective job insecurity. Overall, this shows that it is their low income rather than their feelings of insecurity about future employment that explains why temporary employees postpone family formation

From Living Apart to Living Together:Do Children Born before the Current Partnership Matter?

This study examines the association between having children born before the current partnership and women’s and men’s likelihood of transitioning from living apart together (LAT) to co-residing. LAT partnerships are common among individuals with pre-partnership children, but have so far been under-researched. Our study not only focuses on those in LAT relations, but also takes the different pathways to becoming a single parent into account. Event-history analysis was performed using waves 1-4 from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study. The results indicate that separated and widowed mothers were less likely to transition to co-residence with their LAT partner than childless women who had previously been in a co-residential union. Mothers who had previous out-of-union children were found to be even less likely to enter co-residence. Results were mostly similar for men and women. The only exception was the effect of being widowed with children; for men this resulted in higher chances of transitioning to co-residence with a new partner whereas for women the chances were lower. The findings suggest that individuals’ parenthood and union histories are associated with the development of their later partnerships, and that these patterns vary by gender. Given contemporary and future patterns of partnership separation, our study provides insights for better understanding how LAT relations develop for different sub-populations