An explorative approach to the cross-section of international migration and sexual preference: same-sex couples in Germany

Abstract

We study the intersection of international migration and sexual preference from a socio-demographic perspective by looking at same-sex couples among migrants in Germany. Despite increasing ethnic diversity and greater social and legal liberality toward non-normative living arrangements, there are hardly any available quantitative data on this vulnerable group, which crosses two social boundaries. Drawing on the scientific-use file of the German Microcensus (2013), we estimate the prevalence of same-sex couples among female and male migrants, and describe their socio-demographic characteristics. We use different approaches to imputing data to account for the possibility that the reported information on same-sex relationships may be missing or wrong, and consider different definitions of “migrant status”. Our results show that the share of couples who were same-sex was smaller among the immigrant (0.2 to 1.4%) than among the native population (0.6 to 2.0%). Moreover, migrants in a same-sex couple were more similar in terms of other socio-demographic variables (age, education) to natives in a same-sex union than to migrants in an opposite-sex union. This study contributes to the LGBT social science literature by providing the first quantitative description of this minority-in-a minority group in Germany.

Migration, Partner Selection, and Fertility in Germany: How Many Children are Born in Mixed Unions?

“…However, previous research on migrant fertility largely overlooked the fact that fertility usually occurs within partnerships (Bauer & Kneip, 2013 , 2014 ). Increasing international migration and mobility and globalisation processes (Castles et al, 2013 ) have made the partner market more diverse, and the numbers of (any) social boundary-crossing couples have risen in both majority and (migrant) minority groups (Braack & Milewski, 2020 ; Lanzieri, 2012 ). Hence, migrants, migrant descendants, and natives may choose a partner of their own ethnic group (i.e., endogamy) or a partner of a different group (i.e., exogamy), which can have implications for their fertility behaviour.…”