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Economic uncertainty has been posited as an important contributor to low fertility in many European countries. A separate line of research emphasizes the role of gender inequality in depressing post-industrial fertility. This paper examines how these two forces interact in the context of Spain, a society where young adults face tremendous economic uncertainty yet simultaneously express gender-role attitudes that are much more egalitarian than those of the prior generation. We draw on original in-depth interviews to analyse how the reasoning about fertility intentions among young highly-educated partnered urban men and women in Spain is conditioned by the combination of gender egalitarianism and perceived economic insecurity. Interviewees' narratives suggest that the positive relationship between gender egalitarianism and fertility intentions hypothesized by many social demographers is hampered by couples' challenges in dealing with the uncertain economic environment, Spain's dualistic labour market, and the low level of institutional support for dual-earner couples.

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This article examines men’s and women’s reasoning regarding part-time unpaid parental leave use intentions once paid leave ends by using 52 original interviews conducted with highly educated men and women aged 24 years to 35 years in stable partnerships in Spain. We identify three part-time unpaid parental leave use strategies concealing six different narratives. Our results offer interesting gender discrepancies that reveal intended unpaid leave use arrangements. Our comparison of men’s and women’s narratives suggests that men seem to overestimate the egalitarianism within their relationships by being highly predisposed to take unpaid leave. Our analysis indicates that economic uncertainty and labor-market barriers (including persistent gender inequality) perpetuate a gendered use of this gender-neutral policy even among couples who show strong gender-egalitarian attitudes.