Back to search

VAM-Velferd, arbeid og migrasjon

Changing families and the gender revolution

Alternative title: Familien i endring og nye kjønnsmønstre

Awarded: NOK 11.4 mill.

Project Number:

236926

Application Type:

Project Period:

2014 - 2020

Funding received from:

Location:

Subject Fields:

The article of Kitterød and Halrynjo (2017) provides and overview over research on father?s quota in parental leave schemes and to which degree such quotas have contributed to increase gender equality between mothers and fathers. A more equal distribution of paid and unpaid work between parents was an important goal when a four-week quota of paternity leave was introduced into the Norwegian parental leave scheme. However, research evidence is mixed as to whether the quota has actually led to more equal parenting roles. Qualitative studies and studies that look at statistical correlations show strong associations between the father?s use of parental leave and the parents? subsequent adaptations to work and family, while quasi-experimental studies of the reform in the father?s quota find small and partly contradictory causal effects on parents? work-family patterns. In the present paper we discuss why studies arrive at diverging conclusions. Even though quasi-experimental studies identify few causal effects, we cannot conclude that more de-specialization in the child?s first year does not result in more de-specialization later on as such studies rarely examine whether early de-specialization actually happens. In order for early de-specialization to occur, fathers need to use the quota according to the reform?s intentions. In order to assess whether reserved parental leave for fathers can bring about more symmetrical parenting practices, we need more knowledge about how fathers use the quota and how much de-specialization is required in order for lasting changes in parents? division of paid and unpaid work to take place. Bergsvik, Kitterød and Wiik 2019 compare the development of within-couple gender gaps in earnings over time (2005-2014) between childless couples and couples with children of different ages, and within couples before and after childbirth. Results showed that the gender gap in earnings in couples increased with the number of children and was most distinct among couples with children below 6 years. However, the association between parenthood and within-couple inequality in earnings was reduced across the study period, a development partly driven by a decreasing fatherhood premium evident from 2009 onwards. Not only women?s but also men?s income development is now negatively affected by having young children in the household. Our findings, thus, indicate important changes in how men and women prioritize paid labor after a childbirth. Jalovaara et al 2018 compare cohort total fertility and ultimate childlessness by gender and educational attainment for cohorts born 1940 and onwards in four Nordic countries. Childlessness, which had been increasing, has plateaued in Denmark, Norway and Sweden. The highest level of men?s childlessness appears among the least educated. In the oldest female cohorts, childlessness was highest among the highly educated, but these patterns have changed over the cohorts as childlessness has increased among the low educated and remained relatively stable among higher educated women. In Denmark, Norway and Sweden, childlessness is now highest among the least educated women. Hart 2018 investigates how the association between union dissolution and childlessness depends on life course context. Eight well-clustered groups of union histories are distinguished. Four groups consist of life courses dominated by a long first or second union and display low levels of childlessness. The highest proportion childlessness is found among individuals who entered a first union late and dissolved it quickly. Groups characterized by long spells alone after a dissolution or many short unions also displayed a high proportion of childlessness. In the paper by Lappegård, Klüsener and Vignoli (2017) the authors posit that the relevance of the theoretical explanations on non-marital childbearing might vary depending on the geographic scale: that is, across nation states, subnational regions, or individuals. To explore this hypothesis, they analyse harmonised survey data from 16 European countries. They apply hierarchical models to study how the likelihood that a woman living in a couple will have her first child either within nonmarital cohabitation or within marriage is linked to national and subnational regional variation in socioeconomic conditions that are related to explanations based on the existing theoretical considerations. Results suggest that the Second Demographic Transition framework is very important for understanding variation between countries, whereas arguments pointing to a pattern of disadvantage seem to be more relevant at the individual and subnational regional level. It thus appears that taking a multilevel perspective can provide new insight into why existing theoretical explanations are not always fully coherent.

Prosjektet har gjort et viktig bidrag til å opprettholde, oppdatere, utvide og spre familiedemografisk kunnskap i Norge. Det er stor interesse for spørsmål om samliv (særlig brudd), fruktbarhet (særlig synkende fødselsrate) og likestilling (ikke minst etter fedrekvoteforlengelse i Norge) både i det internasjonale forskersamfunnet og fra nasjonale medier og myndigheter, inkludert det norske samfunnet.

The point of departure for the project is three profound changes sweeping across modern societies: women surpassing men in higher education, growing female labour force participation and more involved men in the family. This gender revolution influences the family formation process and is moving at different paces across countries, which calls for comparative research on the interplay between gender roles and the family formation process. The project has a strong international profile and we apply an analytical approach where the family formation process involves different components: (A) union formation, (B) couple specialization, and (C) childbearing. This novel approach takes into account that the family formation process contains several components that influence each other: who enters unions and who partner with whom influence couple specialization and the relative economic position of men and women, which in turn influence childbearing, which may very well in return influence couple specialization. Union formation patterns are also expected to influence childbearing directly. We argue that it is necessary to include the union formation process in analyses of couple specialization and childbearing because it determines the socioeconomic correlates of selection into unions, as well as how socioeconomic characteristics affect choice of union. We aim of theoretical development within this field. While several theoretical frameworks have been developed to understand the interplay of new gender roles and family behaviour at societal level, there is need for more theories to better understand the mechanisms at the individual level. The design of our planned studies requires large-scale data that allows for longitudinal approaches and long time-series, as well as data made available for cross-country comparison. Register data will be used for the in-depth analyses of Norway, while survey data will be used for the comparative analyses.

Publications from Cristin

No publications found

No publications found

No publications found

Funding scheme:

VAM-Velferd, arbeid og migrasjon