1. |
- Andersson, Gunnar, 1962-, et al.
(author)
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Cohort fertility patterns in the Nordic countries
- 2009
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In: Demographic Research. - 1435-9871. ; 20:14, s. 313-352
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Previous analyses of period fertility suggest that the trends of the Nordic countries are sufficiently similar to speak of a common "Nordic fertility regime". We investigate whether this assumption can be corroborated by comparing cohort fertility patterns in the Nordic countries. We study cumulated and completed fertility of Nordic birth cohorts based on the childbearing histories of women born in 1935 and later derived from the population registers of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. We further explore childbearing behaviour by women’s educational attainment. The results show remarkable similarities in postponement and recuperation between the countries. Median childbearing age is about 2−3 years higher in the 1960−64 cohort than in the 1950−54 cohort, but the younger cohort recuperates the fertility level of the older cohort at ages 30 and above. A similar pattern of recuperation can be observed for highly educated women as compared to women with less education, resulting in small differences in completed fertility across educational groups. Another interesting finding is that of a positive relationship between educational level and the final number of children when women who become mothers at similar ages are compared. Despite some differences in the levels of childlessness, country differences in fertility outcome are generally small. The cohort analyses thus support the notion of a common Nordic fertility regime.
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2. |
- Andersson, Gunnar, et al.
(author)
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Gendering family composition : Sex preferences for children and childbearing behavior in the Nordic countries
- 2006
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In: Demography. ; 43:2, s. 255-267
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- It has been argued that a society’s gender system might influence parents’ sex preferences for children. If this was true, one should expect to find no evidence of such preferences in countries with a high level of gender equality. In this paper, we exploit population register data from Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden to examine continuities and changes in parental sex preferences in the Nordic countries during the last three to four decades. First, we cannot observe a visible effect of the sex of the first-born child on second birth risks. Secondly, we detect a distinct preference for at least one child of each sex among parents of two children. Next to this combination preference our analysis reveals, thirdly, that Danish, Norwegian and Swedish parents developed a preference for having a daughter, while Finns exhibit a significant son preference. These findings show that modernization and more equal opportunities for women and men do not necessarily lead to parental gender indifference. On the contrary, they might even result in new sex preferences.
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3. |
- Andersson, Gunnar, 1962-, et al.
(author)
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Understanding parental gender preferences in advanced societies : Lessons from Sweden and Finland
- 2009
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In: Gender Ratio Imbalance. - Hyderabad : The Icfai University Press. - 9788131424681 ; , s. 154-175
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Extending recent research on parental gender preferences in the Nordic countries, this study uses unique register data from Finland and Sweden (1971-1999) that provide us with the opportunity to compare childbearing dynamics and possible underlying sex preferences among native majorities and national minorities, namely Finnish-born immigrants in Sweden and members of the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland. For Finland, we observe a continuous boy preference among the national majority and the Swedish-speaking minority as reflected in higher third-birth rates of mothers of two girls than of mothers of two boys. Evidence of similar preferences is found for Finnish-born migrants in Sweden, where the native-born population instead appears to have developed a girl preference. In all cases, we also observe clear indications of a preference for having at least one child of each sex. Generally speaking, our findings support an interpretation of parental gender preferences as a longstanding cultural phenomenon, related to country of childhood socialization rather than language group. Moreover, an analysis of regional and educational differentials in child-sex specific fertility behavior in Sweden reveals no evidence which supports various diffusion theories of persistence and change in parents’ sex preferences for children.
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4. |
- Andersson, Gunnar, et al.
(author)
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Understanding parental gender preferences in advanced societies : Lessons from Sweden and Finland
- 2008
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In: Girl Child. - : The Icfai University Press, Hyderabad. - 9788131415047 ; , s. 129-150
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Extending recent research on parental gender preferences in the Nordic countries, this study uses unique register data from Finland and Sweden (1971-1999) that provide us with the opportunity to compare childbearing dynamics and possible underlying sex preferences among native majorities and national minorities, namely Finnish-born immigrants in Sweden and members of the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland. For Finland, we observe a continuous boy preference among the national majority and the Swedish-speaking minority as reflected in higher third-birth rates of mothers of two girls than of mothers of two boys. Evidence of similar preferences is found for Finnish-born migrants in Sweden, where the native-born population instead appears to have developed a girl preference. In all cases, we also observe clear indications of a preference for having at least one child of each sex. Generally speaking, our findings support an interpretation of parental gender preferences as a longstanding cultural phenomenon, related to country of childhood socialization rather than language group. Moreover, an analysis of regional and educational differentials in child-sex specific fertility behavior in Sweden reveals no evidence which supports various diffusion theories of persistence and change in parents’ sex preferences for children.
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5. |
- Andersson, Gunnar, et al.
(author)
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Understanding parental gender preferences in advanced societies : Lessons from Sweden and Finland
- 2007
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In: Demographic Research. ; 17:6, s. 135-156
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Extending recent research on parental gender preferences in the Nordic countries, this study uses unique register data from Finland and Sweden (1971-1999) that provide us with the opportunity to compare childbearing dynamics and possible underlying sex preferences among native majorities and national minorities, namely Finnish-born immigrants in Sweden and members of the Swedish-speaking minority in Finland. For Finland, we observe a continuous boy preference among the national majority and the Swedish-speaking minority as reflected in higher third-birth rates of mothers of two girls than of mothers of two boys. Evidence of similar preferences is found for Finnish-born migrants in Sweden, where the native-born population instead appears to have developed a girl preference. In all cases, we also observe clear indications of a preference for having at least one child of each sex. Generally speaking, our findings support an interpretation of parental gender preferences as a longstanding cultural phenomenon, related to country of childhood socialization rather than language group. Moreover, an analysis of regional and educational differentials in child-sex specific fertility behavior in Sweden reveals no evidence which supports various diffusion theories of persistence and change in parents’ sex preferences for children.
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6. |
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7. |
- Kulu, Hill, et al.
(author)
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Settlement size and fertility in the Nordic countries
- 2007
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In: Population Studies. ; 61:3, s. 265-285
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- While the variation in childbearing patterns across countries and between socio-economic groups within a country has been studied in detail, less is known about the differences in fertility patterns across settlements within a country. Using aggregate and individual-level register data, we examine fertility variation across settlements in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden. We observe a significant variation in fertility level by settlement size in all four of these Nordic countries—the larger the settlement, the lower the fertility. Second, the variation in fertility levels has decreased over time, but significant differences in fertility between settlements of different size persist. Third, the timing of childbearing also varies across settlements—the larger the settlement, the later the peak of fertility. Fourth, our analysis of parity-specific fertility in Sweden shows that the major socio-economic characteristics of women account for only a small portion of fertility variation across settlements.
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8. |
- Neyer, Gerda, et al.
(author)
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Fertilität, Familiengründung und Familienerweiterung in den nordischen Ländern
- 2006
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In: Wem gehört die Familie der Zukunft?. - : Verlag Barbara Budrich, Opladen. - 3866490496 ; , s. 207-233
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Book chapter (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Dieser Beitrag beschäftigt sich mit der Geburtenentwicklung in den nordischen Ländern seit den 1970er Jahren und den Wirkungen familienpolitischer Maßnahmen auf die Fertilitätsentwicklung. Basis der Analysen bilden Auswertungen harmonisierter Registerdaten Dänemarks, Finnlands, Norwegens und Schwedens. Der erste Teil des Beitrags bietet einen Überblick über die Entwicklung der Fertilität in den nordischen Ländern nach Alter und Geburtenordnung. Dies erlaubt, gemeinsame von länderspezifischen Entwicklungen zu unterscheiden. Daran schließt sich eine Darstellung des Zusammenhangs zwischen Bildungsrichtungen und Fertilität. Im letzten Teil des Beitrages erörtern wir, welchen Einfluss familienpolitische Maßnahmen, insbesondere ein einkommensbezogenes Elterngeld, ein auf den Geburtenabstand bezogenes Elterngeld, sowie die Inanspruchnahme der Elternzeit durch Väter auf Geburtenverhalten und Geburtenentwicklung in den einzelnen Ländern hatten.
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9. |
- Thomson, Elizabeth, et al.
(author)
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Childbearing in stepfamilies : how parity matter
- 2002. - 2
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In: Dynamics of fertility and partnership in Europe<em></em>. - New York ; Geneva: United Nations. : United Nations. Economic Commission for Europe.. - 9211168090 ; , s. 87-99
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Book chapter (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We investigate potential effects of stepfamily status on births in unions in Austria, Finland, France, and West Germany. In all four countries, we find support for the value of a first union birth to signal the couple’s commitment. Birth rates are higher if the couple has no shared children, net of their total (hers + his) parity. Unexpectedly, couples in which one of the partners is not a parent had lower birth risks than those in which both partners brought children to their union, contrary to the value of a first birth to establish parental status. We also find support for the value of a second shared birth to provide a full sibling. Net of their combined parity, stepfamily couples with one shared child had a higher risk than families without stepchildren of having a second shared birth. Some of these results were not consistent in analyses of men’s reports, in part due to the smaller male samples and, possibly, to the poorer reports of men about their children from previous unions.
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10. |
- Vikat, Andres, et al.
(author)
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Generations and Gender Survey (GGS) : Towards a better understanding ofrelationships and processes in the life course
- 2007
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In: Demographic Research. - 1435-9871. ; 17:14, s. 389-440
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Generations and Gender Survey (GGS) is one of the two pillars of the Generations and Gender Programme designed to improve understanding of demographic and social development and of the factors that influence these developments. This article describes how the theoretical perspectives applied in the survey, the survey design and the questionnaire are related to this objective. The key features of the survey include panel design, multidisciplinarity, comparability, context-sensitivity, inter-generational and gender relationships. The survey applies the life course approach, focussing on the processes of childbearing, partnership dynamics, home leaving, and retiring. The selection of topics for data collection mainly follows the criterion of theoretically grounded relevance to explaining one or more of the mentioned processes. A large portion of the survey deals with economic aspects of life, such as economic activity, income, and economic well-being; a comparably large section is devoted to values and attitudes. Other domains covered by the survey include gender relationships, household composition and housing, residential mobility, social networks and private transfers, education, health, and public transfers. The third chapter of the article describes the motivations for their inclusion. The GGS questionnaire is designed for a face-to-face interview. It includes the core that each participating country needs to implement in full, and four optional sub-modules on nationality and ethnicity, on previous partners, on intentions of breaking up, and on housing, respectively. The participating countries are encouraged to include also the optional sub-modules to facilitate comparative research on these topics.
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