Second Union Fertility in France: Partners’ Age and Other Factors
Eva Beaujouan
In France, as in the rest of Europe, family trajectories have become increasingly diversified. How does childbearing fit into these more complex conjugal patterns? More specifically, what is the impact of repartnering on men’s and women’s fertility? This article attempts to answer these questions, drawing on data yielded by the French version of the Generations and Gender Survey (Étude des relations familiales et intergénérationnelles, ERFI, INED-INSEE), conducted in 2005. Although births in reconstituted families have been extensively studied in Europe, scant attention has been paid to differences in the constraints encountered by men and women when they form a second union. We found that the woman’s age at repartnering accounts for the difference in the crude ratios of previously childless men to fathers, and previously childless women to mothers, who have a child in their second union. After controlling for woman’s age, we also noted that a couple is least likely to have a child after repartnering if both partners are already parents. If only one of them is a parent, the probability of having a child does not differ significantly from that of a childless couple.
Gender and Migration: The Sexual Debut of Sub-Saharan African Migrants in France
Elise Marsicano, Nathalie Lydié, Nathalie Bajos
This article analyses the recomposition of gender relations in a migratory context from a specific viewpoint: the sexual debut of individuals who migrated from sub-Saharan Africa to France. It is based on a 2005 survey of 1,874 sub-Saharan African migrants in the Île-de-France region. The aim is to determine the impact of men’s and women’s migratory trajectories on their first sexual experiences, as well as any possible changes in sexual power relations after migration. The construction of migratory profiles enabled us to distinguish between the context of socialization during childhood and adolescence, and the context in which the first sexual intercourse occurred. While social-cultural capital is still a determining factor in the timing of the sexual debut, the influence of educational and religious socialization varies according to the context of sexual debut, and acts differently for women and for men. Furthermore, in the case of individuals who became sexually active before migrating, the age gap between partners and the frequency of forced first sexual intercourse (notably for women), reflect very inegalitarian relational contexts. Conversely, the fact of having migrated during childhood provides more egalitarian conditions for sexual debut, similar to those of persons born in France.
The Intimate Orientations of the First "PACS" Couples in France
Wilfried Rault, le groupe CSF
Since its creation in France in 1999, the civil partnership (Pacte civil de solidarité, or PACS), which provides recognition for same-sex couples in terms other than those of marriage, has become increasingly popular among heterosexual couples. While contemporary transformations in types of union and in sexuality are often studied independently, this article breaks with this dissociation to challenge the hypothesis whereby individuals who register a PACS in France present attitudes and behaviours with respect to sexuality that reflect the normative diversification observed by the group "Context of Sexuality in France" (Contexte de la sexualité en France, CSF). Using data from the CSF survey of 12,364 individuals conducted by INED and INSERM in 2005-2006, we studied the relationship of individuals in PACS unions with the three main components of the dominant normative order in sexuality: heterosexuality, interlinking of conjugality and sexuality, and the value placed on "alternative" practices. PACS unions are compared with other types of union. We find that persons who opt for the new type of registered partnership have specific characteristics that relate more to liberal representations of sexuality than to actual differences in practice. Behind this specificity lies a considerable gap between the sexes, even though differences between men and women in PACS unions are sometimes relatively smaller.
Occupational Mobility and Mortality in France: Links confirmed for Men, Emergent for Women
Emmanuelle Cambois, Caroline Laborde
Mortality differentials between French occupations and occupational classes are large and widening. But considerable inequalities also exist within occupational classes by career history. Changes in the labour market and occupational pathways in recent decades - notably among women - have altered the composition of occupational classes and their average mortality levels. This article analyses the changes in mortality differentials between occupational classes by studying occupational mobility and associated mortality using data from the permanent demographic sample (Échantillon démographique permanent, EDP), a long-term sample representative of the French population at different dates. Analysis of mortality in 1975 (EDP75) and 1999 (EDP99) by occupational class and past occupational moves shows that mortality has declined for all classes but in different ways, causing a slight widening of differentials for both sexes. Within occupational classes, differentials by past moves increased in the EDP99 for men and were now observed in all classes for women. Changes in the composition of occupational classes and in excess mortality associated with certain moves have contributed to this increase in inequalities between occupational classes. This finding highlights the importance of interpreting changes in mortality differentials in the light of sociodemographic developments.
Fertility Intentions and Obstacles to their Realization in France and Italy
Arnaud Régnier-Loilier, Daniele Vignoli
This article compares fertility intentions and realization in France (2005-2008) and in Italy (2003-2007), two countries with contrasting fertility models, using comparable data from the longitudinal Generations and Gender Surveys (GGS). Four main findings are presented. First, the strong predictive power of negative fertility intentions and, conversely, the fact that positive intentions overestimate actual outcomes, are highlighted. The comparison then reveals an important difference: the proportion of couples who realized their positive fertility intentions was systematically higher in France and, for those who did not intend to have a child, the proportion who went on to have one was also higher. Alongside the classic effects of age and number of children, socioeconomic factors play an important role, and less favourable situations appear to hinder the realization of intentions. The determinants of intentions are not all identical, however, and there is no single model that applies to both countries: the role of context remains primordial. Last, among couples who did not realize their intentions, some had postponed their childbearing plans while others had abandoned them altogether. Here too, the determinants are not the same in both countries. In this respect, the distinction between those who postpone and those who forego, rarely made in the literature, is an interesting question.
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The Transition to Second Child in Italy: Expectations and Realization
Francesca Rinesi, Antonella Pinnelli, Sabrina Prati, Cinzia Castagnaro, Claudia Iaccarino
The total fertility rate in Italy is well below replacement level but most women still plan to have two children. This gap between expressed fertility plans and observed reproductive behaviour warrants examination. The authors assess the correspondence between fertility intentions of women with one child and subsequent behaviour at micro level and highlight which characteristics affect both the formation of positive fertility intentions and their realization in the short run. Their analysis relies on an ad hoc dataset built by linking the 2002 edition of the Sample Survey on Births (where fertility intentions were asked) and the live births recorded in the Population Register from 2002 to 2008. The results clearly show that the fertility plans of women with one child play a crucial role in determining their subsequent reproductive behaviour. They tested the hypothesis that socioeconomic status and women’s housework burden affects both the intentions to have another child and their realization among women with one child. Their findings suggest that socioeconomic status affects not so much the formation of positive fertility intentions but rather their realization, while women’s housework burden does not display significant effects.
