Intergenerational family constellations in contemporary Europe

Demographic research has drawn attention to the multiple ways in which changes in mortality and childbearing have produced major shifts in intergenerational family structures. The aim of this article is to contribute to this body of research by analysing the data from the Generations and Gender Surveys for nine European countries. In the study, data pertaining to the availability of ascending (parents and grandparents) and descending kin (children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren) of the respondent are combined to shed light on the family structures in which indviduals are embedded at various stages of their lives. The findings provide new insights into the ways in which the past and present diversity of demographic regimes comes together into specific patterns of intergenerational family constellations across Europe. This convergence may yield family constellations of very similar “height†in countries with sharply contrasting demographic histories. The results also indicate that certain demographic scenarios may halt or temporarily reverse the trend towards the further vertical extension of family constellations.comparative studies, Europe, intergenerational family constellations, kin networks

First union formation in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania: patterns across countries and gender

This article examines the transformation of first union formation in the Baltic countries between the late 1960s and early 1990s, in the context of societal and family-level gender relations. The analyses employ microdata from the European Family and Fertility Surveys program. Our results on the trends indicate that in Estonia and Latvia the shift from direct marriage to cohabitation started well before the fall of socialist regime. Event-history models provide support for a hypothesised association between union formation and gender system, with Lithuania showing more traditional features in both respect, plausibly embedded in long-standing cultural differences between the countries.Baltic countries, gender system, union formation

Population-related Policies in Estonia in the 20th Century: Stages and Turning Points

This article is about the experience of population-related policies in Estonia. During the recent decade much has been published on this theme, usually with an analysis of currently enforced regulations. Repeated amendments of legal norms and procedures, which are inevitable in a period of fundamental reforms, however, tend to limit their value quite rapidly. Against such a background, this paper applies a longer perspective with an attempt to cover the main stages and turning points in the development of population-related policies in the country since the establishment of statehood in 1918. In the interwar period, the efforts to build up a modern nation included setting up relevant institutions and regulations in the ? eld of population-related policies. These undertakings have been seldom discussed in the recent publications. Somewhat similarly, the postwar decades are frequently regarded as fairly distant and of little relevance to present challenges. To understand the developments, however, the longer view should not be neglected. Todays concerns are rooted in the arrangements and disarrangements of the past, and no less importantly, such continuity is strengthened by the nature of population development and the ? ow of cohorts which absorb the in? uences of the societal environment and carry them along through their lifetime. The article is structured in four sections focusing on the development of marriage and the family, children and fertility, the pension system and social welfare, and the health care system. In each section, the aim is to outline successive policy regimes and their main characteristics in terms of objectives and methods of regulations. Understandably, limited space does not allow coverage of minor changes and technicalities, so for more speci? c information the article provides further reference to various source materials

Demographic Development of the Ingrian National Minority in Estonia,

The article focuses on the demographic development af the Ingrian minority in Estonia.In a broader framework the research underlying the article originates from acomparative study af national minority populations, coordinated by the EuropeanPopulation Committee. The article starts with a short overview af major changes inthe ethnic composition af the Estonian population, covering the implications af theSecond World War on national minorities and the emergence af aforeign-origin population.The analysis af the Ingrian minority draws on the data from the Estoniannational minority survey. Building on the life course approach and event history methodology,the survey was designed ta retrospectively reconstruct the trends in majordemographic processes and follow the continuity af minority-specific characteristicsacross three successive generations. The article discusses the size and age structureaf the Ingrian population, fertility and mortality patterns, ethnic intermarriage, languageand religious affiliation. The results emphasize that national minority populationstend ta follow distinct pathways af population development, which are different,from the patterns characteristic af the majority population as well asfrom those foundin the countries af historical origin. Also, the analysis clearly revealed long-termconsequences imposed by the loss af their homeland and their dispersal

Fertility, family formation and dissolution: comparing Poland and Estonia 1989–2005

The article presents a comparative analysis of changes in fertility and family formation and dissolution, in Poland and Estonia, in the years 1989–2005. Both countries were members of the socialist bloc and launched political, economic and social system reforms at the end of the 1980s. Estonia belongs to Northern Europe, geographically referred to as Baltoscandia, and Poland to the region of Central Europe. Using basic demographic indicators, and the position of Poland and Estonia in Europe, fertility and family related processes are analysed in the context of their transformation in European countries. The article consists of two parts. The first one presents an assessment of changes in fertility. In addition to general indicators, the Bongaarts–Feeney formula is applied to measure the tempo and quantum effects during the period of rapid fertility transformation. The second part focuses on family formation and dissolution process. Both fertility and family changes, in Poland and Estonia, are considered in the broader European perspective. The findings concerning the diversity of analysed demographic changes may be summarized as follows. Both countries differ in terms of the tempo of changes, that began at the turn of the 1990s. In Estonia, the changes followed a steeper trajectory, with the drop of fertility and marriage rates to bottom levels during 6–8 years after the onset of transformation. After reaching the lowest point, both fertility and marriage rates entered a new stage and started to recuperate. In Poland, the changes featured a more gradual profile and were spread over a longer period. Although the decrease has slowed down with respect to fertility as well as marriage rates, the data until 2005 do not yet reveal any significant recuperation. Another country-specific feature of fertility and family transformation concerns the interrelationship between fertility and nuptiality. Although gradually weakening, Poland still features a relatively strong connection between childbearing and registered marriage, which is reflected in a comparatively low share of children born outside wedlock and a modest prevalence of non-married cohabitation among young people. In Estonia, the disconnection of fertility from marriage and the spread of pre-marital cohabitation started nearly at the same time as in the Scandinavian countries and accelerated rapidly, since the onset of societal transition. The strengthening of these dissimilarities was also revealed by comparisons with other European nations. The results of the Bongaarts-Feeney’s model also seem to indicate, that the observed differences are likely to persist in the foreseeable future. In general, the results support the assertion, that among the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, Estonia and Poland provide valuable grounds for in-depth comparative research, on the recent fertility and family changes. Life history data, available due to the new round of national surveys carried out in both countries after the turn of the millennium, offer a favourable basis for in-depth studies, along the envisaged lines

Intergenerational family constellations in contemporary Europe: Evidence from the Generations and Gender Survey

Demographic Research a free, expedited, online journal of peer-reviewed research and commentary in the population sciences published by th

The Baltic countries : population, family and family policy : [monograph]

Bibliogr.: p. 255-270Monografijoje atsižvelgiant į Europos Sąjungos kontekstą, lyginamas gyventojų politikos efektyvumas Lietuvoje, Latvijoje ir Estijoje. Knygoje apžvelgiamos dabartinės demografinės, šeimos, gimstamumo tendencijos, analizuojamas šeimos politikos atsakas į aptariamus pokyčius Baltijos šalyse. Knyga skirta šeimos politikos Baltijos šalyse formuotojams, taip pat ir platesniam skaitytojų ratui. Pirmoje dalyje "Demografiniai pokyčiai Baltijos šalyse Europos Sąjungos šalių kontekste" pateikiama lyginamoji Estijos, Latvijos ir Lietuvos demografinės raidos analizė Europos Sąjungos šalių kontekste. Antroje dalyje "Demografiniai pokyčiai ir dabartinė situacija Baltijos šalyse" (1989-2008) pateikiama detali Baltijos šalių demografijos procesų ir jų veiksnių analizė.Trečia dalis "Šeimos politika Baltijos šalyse" skirta Estijos, Latvijos ir Lietuvos šeimos politikos transformacijoms per pastaruosius beveik dvidešimt metų aptarti. Kiekvienai šaliai skirtame skyriuje pristatoma šeimos politikos raida, pagrindiniai veiksniai, darę įtaką jos pokyčiams, tikslai, dabartinės šeimos politikos priemonių sistema, vertinamas šeimos politikos poveikis (tikėtinas ar realus) gimstamumui. Monografijos ketvirtos dalies "Šeimos ir šeimos politikos pokyčiai Baltijos šalyse" atvejų studijos skirtos labai aktualių Baltijos šalių šeimos, gimstamumo ir svarbiausių šeimos politikos dalių specifinėms ir giluminėms analizė. Monografijos penkta dalis "Namų ūkis, šeima ir gimstamumas gyventojų surašymo duomenimis" skirta atskleisti gyventoju surašymo informacinio potencialo galimybėms tirti šeimą, namų ūkius, šeiminį ir santuokinį statusą bei gimstamumąThis monograph gives an overview of demographic trends and family policies in the three Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) during the period 1989-2008. The changes in fertility, mortality, and international migration are systematically analysed in the monograph. Particular attention is given to the peculiarities of the changing family and family policies in the three countries. Household structures, family, and childbearing patterns are also examined in the monographSocialinių tyrimų instituta

First union formation in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania: patterns across countries and gender

This article examines the transformation of first union formation in the Baltic countries between the late 1960s and early 1990s, in the context of societal and family-level gender relations. The analyses employ microdata from the European Family and Fertility Surveys program. Our results on the trends indicate that in Estonia and Latvia the shift from direct marriage to cohabitation started well before the fall of socialist regime. Event-history models provide support for a hypothesised association between union formation and gender system, with Lithuania showing more traditional features in both respect, plausibly embedded in long-standing cultural differences between the countries