European Sociological Review Advance Access published online on August 31, 2009
European Sociological Review, doi:10.1093/esr/jcp044
On The Relation Between Fertility, Natality, and Nuptiality
Correspondence: Alexia Prskawetz (to whom correspondence should be addressed), Institute for Mathematical Methods in Economics, Vienna University of Technology, Argentinierstr. 8/4/105-3, 1040 Vienna, Austria and Vienna Institute of Demography, Wohllebengasse 12–14, 6th floor, A-1040 Vienna, Austria. Email: afp{at}econ.tuwien.ac.at
Correspondence: Marija Mamolo, Vienna Institute of Demography, Wohllebengasse 12–14, 6th floor, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.
Correspondence: Henriette Engelhardt, Department for Population Studies, University of Bamberg, Lichtenhaiderstraße 11, Bamberg, Germany.
Recent studies of fertility in Europe indicate a changing cross-country correlation between total fertility and fertility-related behaviour. Fertility now tends to be lowest in countries that are traditional, catholic, and family-oriented, while it is highest in countries with high divorce rates, high rates of cohabitation, and high levels of extra-marital births. In this article we provide support to the argument that the change in the cross-country correlation between fertility and fertility-related behaviour may indicate a change in social context of this fertility-related behaviour that has helped to uncover cross-country differences in social norms, culture, and institutional settings. We apply pooled time series analysis and show that time and country heterogeneity in the association between fertility and fertility-related behaviour can explain the change in the cross-country correlation. Our results also indicate that further postponement of marriage and motherhood leads to less pronounced declines in fertility.
Manuscript received: December 1, 2007.