Analyzing Childlessness

Childlessness has been on the rise in many European societies. In Germany, the UK, Austria, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, childlessness has increased starting with the 1950s cohorts. In these countries, about 20 % of the women born around 1965 will remain childless. In southern Europe and the former state-socialist countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the rise in levels of childlessness is a more recent phenomenon. Yet among younger cohorts in these countries, childlessness has reached levels of 15 % or higher. In this introductory chapter, we summarize the long-term trends in childlessness and discuss the differences between European countries in the prevalence of childlessness. We also outline the structure and the logic of this volume

Co-resident Parents and Young People Aged 15–34: Who Does What Housework?

Young adults are now more likely to co-reside with their parents than previous generations, but domestic work patterns among this family type are largely unexplored. This study addresses this issue using Australian Bureau of Statistics Time Use Surveys (1992, 1997, 2006) and Poisson–Gamma regression analyses. It examines patterns in and correlates of domestic labor in two-generation households in which young people aged 15–34 co-reside with their parents (n = 1,946 households comprised of 2,806 young people and 5,129 parents). It differentiates between routine indoor tasks (cooking, cleaning, laundry), non-routine tasks (outdoor work, household management and maintenance, car care) and grocery shopping. Predictors of more time in some domestic activities by young people include being in neither employment nor education/training (NEET), being older, having a single parent and being in a non-English speaking household (young women). Young people being NEET, or female, are associated with less cooking time for mothers, but in the main when young people do perform domestic activities, they do not relieve their parents of those same activities, suggesting more time is spent by the household in total

African ancestry of New World, Bemisia tabaci-whitefly species

Bemisia tabaci whitefly species are some of the world’s most devastating agricultural pests and plant-virus disease vectors. Elucidation of the phylogenetic relationships in the group is the basis for understanding their evolution, biogeography, gene-functions and development of novel control technologies. We report here the discovery of five new Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) B. tabaci putative species, using the partial mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase 1 gene: SSA9, SSA10, SSA11, SSA12 and SSA13. Two of them, SSA10 and SSA11 clustered with the New World species and shared 84.8‒86.5% sequence identities. SSA10 and SSA11 provide new evidence for a close evolutionary link between the Old and New World species. Re-analysis of the evolutionary history of B. tabaci species group indicates that the new African species (SSA10 and SSA11) diverged from the New World clade c. 25 million years ago. The new putative species enable us to: (i) re-evaluate current models of B. tabaci evolution, (ii) recognise increased diversity within this cryptic species group and (iii) re-estimate divergence dates in evolutionary time

What’s a (Childless) Man Without a Woman? The Differential Importance of Couple Dynamics for the Wellbeing of Childless Men and Women in the Netherlands

Using rich couple data from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study, we investigated to what extent there were gender differences in couple dynamics within childless couples (N = 163). Though the childless partners reported similar relationship satisfaction, we found gender differences in the link between relationship conflict and relationship satisfaction - the childless men were more strongly affected by the negative aspects of the partnership. This gender difference was not evident for the association between partner support and relationship satisfaction - the positive aspects of the partnership were equally important for the male and the female childless partners. Furthermore, the association between relationship satisfaction and health was stronger for the childless men than for the childless women and this difference was particularly evident when the levels of relationship satisfaction were low. These results indicate that when they are in unsatisfying romantic relationships, childless men are at a greater risk than childless women of physical and mental ill health

Emotional Aspects and Support in Invitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer Programs

Little is known about the emotional demands upon women of the step-by-step procedures characteristic of involvement in an in vitro fertilization/embryo transfer (IVF-ET) program. In this study, 77 women provided their perceptions of the emotional demands of IVF-ET and explanations for failed attempts, as well as describing their coping strategies and sources of emotional support. Nominated as the two most difficult stages of IVF were the wait for a possible pregnancy after the procedure and the blood tests and injections prior to hospitalization. Women were overly optimistic with a first attempt, with 70% being moderately to highly optimistic about success. Levels of optimism, however, generally declined across attempts. About half of the women intended to stop after four attempts, and almost all would stop after six treatment cycles. Women attributed their lack of success to a wide range of factors, including the low success rate, being anxious or stressed, bad luck, or problems associated with their condition and the procedure. Asked how they coped with the program, the women reported that the major strategy was to adopt the attitude that they might be successful in the long term. Other coping strategies involved keeping busy, staying calm, and seeking the support of other IVF women and husbands. Husbands were listed as the major source of emotional support, followed by other infertile women and nurses, counselors, and doctors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS