IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/poprpr/v42y2023i2d10.1007_s11113-023-09767-1.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Role of Gender Differences in Partnering and Re-partnering for Gender Differences in Completed Fertility

Author

Listed:
  • Linus Andersson

    (University of Turku)

Abstract

Individuals increasingly enter a series of relationships during their reproductive years. As births in higher-order unions increase, fertility becomes partially contingent on re-partnering. Previous research suggests that men re-partner at higher rates than women. This study analyzes whether gender differences in partnering and re-partnering influence gender differences in cohort fertility. We use Finnish register data on all births, marriages, and cohabitations between the ages of 18 and 47 over four full birth cohorts. The gender differences in cohort fertility rate are decomposed into components due to birth rate differences and a compositional component owing to gender differences in the share partnered and re-partnered. We observe no impact of “re-partnering premium” on male fertility. Men have marginally higher re-partnering rates at older ages, when birth rates are low, whereas women have higher rates of partnering and re-partnering at prime childbearing ages. This compositional effect drives a “partnering” advantage for female fertility. This connection between gender differences in partnering and cohort fertility is true across educational levels.

Suggested Citation

  • Linus Andersson, 2023. "The Role of Gender Differences in Partnering and Re-partnering for Gender Differences in Completed Fertility," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 42(2), pages 1-28, April.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:poprpr:v:42:y:2023:i:2:d:10.1007_s11113-023-09767-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s11113-023-09767-1
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11113-023-09767-1
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11113-023-09767-1?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Julie Jefferies & Ann Berrington & Ian Diamond, 2000. "Childbearing Following Marital Dissolution in Britain," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 16(3), pages 193-210, September.
    2. Janet Griffith & Helen Koo & C. Suchindran, 1985. "Childbearing and family in remarriage," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 22(1), pages 73-88, February.
    3. Jonas Wood & Karel Neels & Tine Kil, 2014. "The educational gradient of childlessness and cohort parity progression in 14 low fertility countries," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 31(46), pages 1365-1416.
    4. Jalovaara, Marika & Fasang, Anette Eva, 2017. "From never partnered to serial cohabitors: union trajectories to childlessness," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 36, pages 1703-1720.
    5. Zafer Buyukkececi, 2021. "Does Re-Partnering Behavior Spread Among Former Spouses?," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 37(4), pages 799-824, November.
    6. Eva Beaujouan & Caroline Berghammer, 2019. "The Gap Between Lifetime Fertility Intentions and Completed Fertility in Europe and the United States: A Cohort Approach," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 38(4), pages 507-535, August.
    7. Kieron Barclay & Martin Kolk, 2020. "The Influence of Health in Early Adulthood on Male Fertility," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 46(4), pages 757-785, December.
    8. Elizabeth Thomson & Maria Winkler-Dworak & Martin Spielauer & Alexia Prskawetz, 2012. "Union Instability as an Engine of Fertility? A Microsimulation Model for France," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(1), pages 175-195, February.
    9. Silvia Meggiolaro & Fausta Ongaro, 2010. "The implications of marital instability for a woman’s fertility: Empirical evidence from Italy," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 23(34), pages 963-996.
    10. Sofie Vanassche & Martine Corijn & Koen Matthijs & Gray Swicegood, 2015. "Repartnering and Childbearing After Divorce: Differences According to Parental Status and Custodial Arrangements," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 34(5), pages 761-784, October.
    11. Glenn Sandström & Lena Karlsson, 2019. "The educational gradient of living alone: A comparison among the working-age population in Europe," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 40(55), pages 1645-1670.
    12. Marika Jalovaara & Anette Fasang, 2017. "From never partnered to serial cohabitors: Union trajectories to childlessness," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 36(55), pages 1703-1720.
    13. Susan Stewart, 2002. "The effect of stepchildren on childbearing intentions and births," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 39(1), pages 181-197, February.
    14. Gunnar Andersson & Elizabeth Thomson & Aija Duntava, 2017. "Life-table representations of family dynamics in the 21st century," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 37(35), pages 1081-1230.
    15. Marika Jalovaara & Gerda Neyer & Gunnar Andersson & Johan Dahlberg & Lars Dommermuth & Peter Fallesen & Trude Lappegård, 2019. "Education, Gender, and Cohort Fertility in the Nordic Countries," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 35(3), pages 563-586, July.
    16. repec:cai:poeine:pope_1102_0239 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Marika Jalovaara & Linus Andersson & Anneli Miettinen, 2022. "Parity disparity: Educational differences in Nordic fertility across parities and number of reproductive partners," Population Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 76(1), pages 119-136, January.
    18. Christian Dudel & Sebastian Klüsener, 2021. "Male–Female Fertility Differentials Across 17 High-Income Countries: Insights From A New Data Resource," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 37(2), pages 417-441, April.
    19. Kryštof Zeman & Eva Beaujouan & Zuzanna Brzozowska & Tomáš Sobotka, 2018. "Cohort fertility decline in low fertility countries: Decomposition using parity progression ratios," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 38(25), pages 651-690.
    20. Christian Dudel & Yen-hsin Alice Cheng & Sebastian Klüsener, 2020. "The unexplored parental age gap in an era of fertility postponement," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2020-018, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    21. Nicole Hiekel & Barbara Elisabeth Fulda, 2018. "Love. Break up. Repeat: The prevalence and stability of serial cohabitation among West German women and men born in the early 1970s," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 39(30), pages 855-870.
    22. Sheela Kennedy & Catherine Fitch, 2012. "Measuring Cohabitation and Family Structure in the United States: Assessing the Impact of New Data From the Current Population Survey," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(4), pages 1479-1498, November.
    23. Karen Benjamin Guzzo, 2017. "Is Stepfamily Status Associated With Cohabiting and Married Women’s Fertility Behaviors?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(1), pages 45-70, February.
    24. Lawrence M. Berger & Lidia Panico & Anne Solaz, 2018. "Maternal Repartnering: Does Father Involvement Matter? Evidence from United Kingdom," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 34(1), pages 1-31, February.
    25. Jan M. Hoem & Marika Jalovaara & Cornelia Muresan, 2013. "Recent fertility patterns of Finnish women by union status," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 28(14), pages 409-420.
    26. Frances Goldscheider & Eva Bernhardt & Trude Lappegård, 2015. "The Gender Revolution: A Framework for Understanding Changing Family and Demographic Behavior," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 41(2), pages 207-239, June.
    27. Christine Schnor & Sofie Vanassche & Jan Van Bavel, 2017. "Stepfather or biological father? Education-specific pathways of postdivorce fatherhood," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 37(51), pages 1659-1694.
    28. Jan M. Hoem & Cornelia Mureşan, 2011. "The Total Marital Fertility Rate and Its Extensions [Le taux de fécondité totale dans le mariage et ses extensions]," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 27(3), pages 295-312, August.
    29. Cees H. Elzinga & Aart C. Liefbroer, 2007. "De-standardization of Family-Life Trajectories of Young Adults: A Cross-National Comparison Using Sequence Analysis," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 23(3), pages 225-250, October.
    30. Bruno Schoumaker, 2019. "Male Fertility Around the World and Over Time: How Different is it from Female Fertility?," Population and Development Review, The Population Council, Inc., vol. 45(3), pages 459-487, September.
    31. Christian Dudel & Sebastian Kluesener, 2016. "Estimating male fertility in eastern and western Germany since 1991: A new lowest low?," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 35(53), pages 1549-1560.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Julia Hellstrand & Jessica Nisén & Mikko Myrskylä, 2022. "Less Partnering, Less Children, or Both? Analysis of the Drivers of First Birth Decline in Finland Since 2010," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 38(2), pages 191-221, May.
    2. Marcel Raab & Emanuela Struffolino, 2020. "The Heterogeneity of Partnership Trajectories to Childlessness in Germany," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 36(1), pages 53-70, March.
    3. Julia Hellstrand & Jessica Nisén & Mikko Myrskylä, 2021. "Less partnering, less children, or both? Analysis of the drivers of first-birth decline in Finland since 2010?," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2021-008, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    4. Marika Jalovaara & Linus Andersson, 2023. "A register-based account of period trends in union prevalence, entries, and exits by educational level for men and women in Finland," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 48(14), pages 373-386.
    5. Ana Fostik & Mariana Fernández Soto & Fernando Ruiz-Vallejo & Daniel Ciganda, 2023. "Union Instability and Fertility: An International Perspective," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 39(1), pages 1-47, December.
    6. Maria Winkler-Dworak & Eva Beaujouan & Paola Di Giulio & Martin Spielauer, 2021. "Simulating family life courses: An application for Italy, Great Britain, Norway, and Sweden," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 44(1), pages 1-48.
    7. Christian Dudel & Sebastian Klüsener, 2021. "Male–Female Fertility Differentials Across 17 High-Income Countries: Insights From A New Data Resource," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 37(2), pages 417-441, April.
    8. Zuzanna Brzozowska & Eva Beaujouan & Kryštof Zeman, 2022. "Is Two Still Best? Change in Parity-Specific Fertility Across Education in Low-Fertility Countries," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 41(5), pages 2085-2114, October.
    9. Christian Dudel & Sebastian Klüsener, 2019. "New opportunities for comparative male fertility research: insights from a new data resource based on high-quality birth registers," MPIDR Working Papers WP-2019-023, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany.
    10. Dudel, Christian & Klüsener, Sebastian, 2019. "New opportunities for comparative male fertility research: Insights from a new data resource based on high-quality birth registers," SocArXiv 8kqws, Center for Open Science.
    11. Karen Benjamin Guzzo, 2017. "Is Stepfamily Status Associated With Cohabiting and Married Women’s Fertility Behaviors?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 54(1), pages 45-70, February.
    12. Maria Winkler-Dworak & Eva Beaujouan & Paola Di Giulio & Martin Spielauer, 2019. "Simulating Family Life Courses: An Application for Italy, Great Britain, and Scandinavia," VID Working Papers 1908, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna.
    13. Jan Van Bavel & Mieke Jansen & Belinda Wijckmans, 2012. "Has Divorce Become a Pro-Natal Force in Europe at the Turn of the 21st Century?," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 31(5), pages 751-775, October.
    14. Ester Lazzari, 2021. "Changing trends between education, childlessness and completed fertility: a cohort analysis of Australian women born in 1952–1971," Journal of Population Research, Springer, vol. 38(4), pages 417-441, December.
    15. Caroline Uggla & Jan Saarela, 2024. "First Partner Choice in a Native Minority: The Role of Own and Parental Ethnolinguistic Affiliation," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 40(1), pages 1-32, December.
    16. Margarita Chudnovskaya, 2019. "Trends in Childlessness Among Highly Educated Men in Sweden," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 35(5), pages 939-958, December.
    17. Marika Jalovaara & Gerda Neyer & Gunnar Andersson & Johan Dahlberg & Lars Dommermuth & Peter Fallesen & Trude Lappegård, 2019. "Education, Gender, and Cohort Fertility in the Nordic Countries," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 35(3), pages 563-586, July.
    18. Tomáš Sobotka, 2020. "Introduction: the relevance of studying fertility across time and space," Vienna Yearbook of Population Research, Vienna Institute of Demography (VID) of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna, vol. 18(1), pages 1-24.
    19. Chiara Ludovica Comolli, 2021. "Couples' paid work, state-level unemployment, and first births in the United States," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 45(38), pages 1149-1184.
    20. Marie Bergström & Léonard Moulin, 2022. "Couple Formation is Prolonged not Postponed. New Paths to Union Formation in Contemporary France," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 38(5), pages 975-1008, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:poprpr:v:42:y:2023:i:2:d:10.1007_s11113-023-09767-1. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.