This paper looks at recent increases in relationship dissolution across eight European countries. It finds the phenomenon is more prevalent among childless and cohabiting couples as well as among those with lower levels of education. As separation is more common among the childless, the numbers of children affected may be lower than previously thought. But … Read more
A New Look at the Separation Surge in Europe: Contrasting Adult and Child Perspectives
Sibling influence on family formation: A study of social interaction effects on fertility, marriage, and divorce
This study looked at whether getting married, having children or getting divorced is likely to influence a sibling to do the same. The analysis on more than 4,000 individuals living in Germany showed that siblings were more likely to become parents or get married if their brother or sister had done the same especially up … Read more
Does re-partnering behavior spread among former spouses?
This study investigates whether divorcees who re-partner play a role in their former spouse’s decisions to do the same. The researchers used administrative data from Statistics Netherlands to look at divorcees who remarried or lived with a new partner and the likelihood of their former spouse doing the same soon after and showed this was … Read more
Work and family life courses among Jewish and Israeli-Palestinian Women in Israel
This research looks at young Jewish and Palestinian Israeli women to see whether leading a more advantaged family and work life is linked to their ethnicity and background. It shows that Jewish women are substantially more likely to be in better paid more stable jobs whilst their Palestinian counterparts were more likely to be at … Read more
The effect of unemployment on couples separating. Panel evidence for Germany, Switzerland and the United Kingdom
This research looks at how unemployment affects the risk of separation for heterosexual couples living together in Germany, Switzerland and the UK. The findings show a doubling of the separation rate from 2 to 4 percent after an unemployment spell. The picture was the same whether it was the man or the woman who was … Read more
Parenthood Wage Gaps across the Life-Course: An Intersectional Comparison by Gender and Race
Read a longer summary from Zachary Van Winkle’s website. This paper aims to assess how parenthood wage gaps vary across individual lives for different gender and race groups in the United States. The research uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79 and NLSY97) covering the years 1979–2003 to map parenthood wage gaps … Read more
Trajectories of Life Satisfaction Before, Upon, and After Divorce: Evidence From a New Matching Approach
The new DIAL working paper by Scheppingen and Leopold Trajectories of Life Satisfaction Before, Upon, and After Divorce: Evidence from a New Matching Approach analyses how divorce influences life satisfaction. The results indicate that life satisfaction declines among divorcees, and that some declines last at least five years after the divorce. Van Scheppingen and Leopold … Read more
Union dissolution and income inequality among separating women
This study looks at women’s standard of living immediately after divorce or separation. It finds that women who had a higher standard of living tend to lose more from divorce or separation. At the same time, overall income inequality among separated women increases. The researchers compared the household incomes of separated women to a hypothetical … Read more
The baby year parental leave reform in the GDR and its impact on children’s long-term life satisfaction
This paper finds that children who spend 12 months at home with their mother after being born become adults who are more satisfied with life than those who spend just 5 months at home or in childcare. The study analyses the effects of reforms in the former German Democratic Republic where, in 1976, mothers with … Read more
Association of Preterm Birth and Low Birth Weight With Romantic Partnership, Sexual Intercourse, and Parenthood in Adulthood: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
This systematic review and analysis of existing research suggests that adults born preterm or with low birth weight are less likely than adults born full-term to experience a romantic partnership, sexual intercourse, or to become parents. However, preterm birth or low birth weight does not seem to impair the quality of relationships with partners and … Read more