Fertility analysis from a life course perspective

Modelling the Socio-Economic Determinants of Fertility: A Mediation Analysis using the Parametric g-formula

“…Along similar lines, recent sociological research has also emphasized the links between socio-economic choices and the timing of childbearing, including with respect to later-life opportunities (Goisis and Sigle-Rushton, 2014;Mclanahan, 2004). Each socio-economic process is part of a complex web of time-varying relationships and may therefore have both direct and indirect effects on fertility, as well as mediating the effects of other socio-economic processes on fertility (Aassve et al, 2006;Buhr and Huinink, 2014;Cohen et al, 2011;Upchurch et al, 2002). We therefore define socio-economic determinants as the socio-economic processes that influence child-bearing behaviour, either directly, indirectly or as mediators.…”

“…Socio-economic determinants are difficult to disentangle, and their influence on life course childbearing is difficult to study, even when drawing on the range of methods that are available to social scientists. At the heart of this complexity is the fact that fertility is a time-varying and path-dependent process (Buhr and Huinink, 2014;Huinink and Kohli, 2014). Researchers are often interested in both the timing of births (the 'tempo' of childbearing), as well as the number of children born (the 'quantum' of childbearing) (Balbo et al, 2012).…”

“…Moreover, not only is early life course childbearing (or a lack of early life course childbearing) likely to have a direct effect on future fertility, but it is also likely to have indirect effects on future fertility via various (mediating) socio-economic processes. For example, becoming a parent may disrupt education or employment (Buhr and Huinink, 2014;Upchurch et al, 2002). Previous childbearing is therefore likely to have an effect on the same socio-economic processes that determine future childbearing.…”

Modelling the socio-economic determinants of fertility: a mediation analysis using the parametric g-formula

“…Along similar lines, recent sociological research has also emphasized the links between socio-economic choices and the timing of childbearing, including with respect to later-life opportunities (Goisis and Sigle-Rushton 2014;Mclanahan 2004). Each socio-economic process is part of a complex web of time-varying relationships, and may therefore have both direct and indirect effects on fertility, as well as mediating the effects of other socio-economic processes on fertility (Aassve et al 2006;Buhr and Huinink 2014;Cohen et al 2011;Upchurch et al 2002). We therefore define socio-economic determinants as the socioeconomic processes that influence childbearing behaviour, either directly, indirectly, or as mediators.…”

“…Socio-economic determinants are hard to disentangle, and their influence on life course childbearing is hard to study, even when drawing upon the range of methods that are available to social scientists. At the heart of this complexity is the fact that fertility is a time-varying and path-dependent process (Buhr and Huinink 2014;Huinink and Kohli 2014). Researchers are often interested in both the timing of births (the 'tempo' of childbearing), as well as the number of children born (the 'quantum' of childbearing) (Balbo et al 2012).…”