Relationship quality and family formation in Europe.

The increase in cohabitation and nonmarital childbearing across Europe has raised questions about who still marries either before or after having a child. Although prior studies have addressed the sequence of marriage and childbearing, few have examined the role of relationship quality in these transitions. Here we employ a cross-national perspective to study the association between relationship quality and marriage and/or first birth within cohabitation. Using the Generations and Gender Survey and UK Household Longitudinal Study, we study seven European countries (Austria, France, Hungary, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and UK). We employ competing risk hazard models to follow respondents as they 1) transition from cohabitation into marriage or conception (or separation); 2) transition to marriage (or separation) after having a birth within cohabitation. Results show that cohabitors with higher relationship quality are more marriage prone than those in lower quality relationships in Austria, France, Hungary, and the UK, but not in the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. Instead, higher relationship quality is associated with higher conception risks in cohabitation in Sweden. After childbearing, we find a positive association between relationship quality and marriage among cohabiting parents in the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. These results suggest that marriage is still important for couples with higher quality relationships; however, in countries where cohabitation is widespread, the timing of marriage may have shifted to after childbearing.

First union formation among the children of immigrants: A population-wide study in Norway.

Using Norwegian register data on the total population of individuals who were native-born or who immigrated prior to age 18, this study investigated differences in first union formation across migrant generations, global regions of origin, and gender. Cohabitation was the preferred route into partnerships for all groups, but it was most common among those with either one or two native-born parents. Results provided evidence of a generational gradient in marriage, whereby the native-born children of two immigrants and those immigrating in ages below 13 were less likely to marry than immigrants arriving as teens. Those native born with one native and one immigrant parent were least likely to marry, but most likely to cohabit. The children of immigrants originating from Asia, MENA and Eastern Europe were more marriage prone, whereas those of South-American and European origins were more cohabitation prone, than those originating from elsewhere. Women of most origins and generations more often married compared with men, and this gender gap was largest among those originating from MENA.

Partnership transitions among the children of immigrants in Norway: The role of partner choice.

The family life courses of immigrants and their descendants have been widely studied as indicators of societal integration. But largely absent are investigations into the role of cohabitation in the family lives of these subpopulations. Using Norwegian register data on individuals who were either native born or who immigrated before age 18, we analyse the formation of first cohabiting and marital unions. Next, we compare associations between endogamous or exogamous partner choice and transitions from these first unions. Results showed that the children of immigrants were less likely to cohabit endogamously, but overall more likely to cohabit exogamously and to marry than Norwegians without a migration background. Endogamous migrant-background cohabiting unions were least likely to dissolve, whereas cohabiting couples involving one or two majority partners were less marriage prone than endogamous migrant-background couples. Similarly, among those married, endogamous migrant-background couples were less likely to divorce than their exogamous counterparts.