Women’s Family Life Courses after Union Dissolution: A Comparative Analysis

Sergi Vidal , Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Maike Van Damme , Centre D'Estudis Demografics (CED)

Virtually all post-industrial societies have witnessed increased union dissolution rates since the second half of the XXth century. While family dynamics after union dissolution are gathering scholarly attention, little is still known on how individuals bargain post-separation family life courses across contexts that offer different opportunities for family behaviour. We address the following research questions: How do family life courses evolve after the dissolution of the first stable union? How do these processes vary across socio-historical contexts? We deploy sequence analysis on combined relationship and fertility trajectories over 120 months after the dissolution of the first union. Context variation is assessed by comparing family pathways across separation periods (1970-2000) and countries (France, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the UK) using data from the Harmonized Histories comparative datasets. Preliminary findings show an emerging diversity and complexity in post-separation family trajectories. In most countries, pathways featuring the formation of new families and more complex trajectories became commonplace among recent periods. We also find divergent trends overtime in countries that were forerunners in the diffusion of union dissolution. Results suggest that socio-historical contexts importantly shaped union dissolution and subsequent family behaviour.

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 Presented in Session P1. Postercafe