Conference Agenda

Italy has registered very low or lowest-low fertility rates in the last four decades, while reported fertility desires indicate a preference for a two-child family, which suggests that individuals do not fulfill their fertility desires. However, little is known about the consequences and the reasons behind this gap at the individual level. On the one hand, not being able to realize one’s fertility desires might have consequences in terms of subjective well-being (SWB); on the other hand, the desired-realized fertility gap indicates that there are obstacles to the realization of one’s fertility aspirations. This paper aims at filling these gaps in the literature. In order to do so, we developed an ad hoc survey, which contains questions on the cognitive and affective components of SWB, on respondents’ fertility histories, their fertility desires and intentions, alongside specific information on the reasons why individuals have not yet achieved their fertility desires. The survey will be administered in December 2024-January 2025 on a representative sample (based on quotas) of 6,000 Italian men and women aged 25-49. This unique data will allow to shed light on the reasons behind unmet fertility desires and on the consequences of the fertility gap for individuals’ SWB.

Having children with multiple partners has become a common phenomenon in Western societies, raising concerns about the social inequalities it reflects. Previous research has linked multipartnered fertility (MPF) to social disadvantage, but how these inequalities arise remains unclear. Using data from the Generations and Gender Survey round two (GGS–II) for Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark, we analyze the social gradient in MPF as a life–course outcome. Our study examines inequalities across four key family transitions in the MPF process: entry into parenthood, union dissolution, re–partnering, and fertility within step–families. We find that lower socio–economic status (SES) is associated with a higher likelihood of MPF, especially among women. Although a positive social gradient exists in entry into parenthood, it only slightly reduces inequalities in MPF. Instead, union dissolution substantially contributes to the negative social gradient in MPF. Additionally, SES differences in re–partnering and fertility after re–partnering exacerbate these inequalities, particularly for women. These findings highlight the intersecting role of social and gender inequalities in shaping MPF, even in the relatively egalitarian Nordic countries. As family structures become more complex, there is a need to consider their broader implications for reinforcing social and gender disparities.

This paper studies the relationship between women’s share of the total couple’s income and first and second birth transitions, and how this relationship is moderated by household income and country-level gender equality. Early theories suggesting that, as women’s employment behaviour became more similar to that of men, fertility would decline, have been criticised and argued to be “theoretically and empirically unwarranted”. Demographic literature has since long underlined the relevance of gender equality for fertility decisions, predicting that fertility will rise again once full gender equality is being reached. Yet, the fertility advantage of equality might be also explained by the higher economic resources available to couples who contribute equally to the couples’ income. Thus, we rule out economic necessities by introducing a moderation with disposable household income. Then, since the equality-fertility relationship will develop depending on country-specific characteristics, we study how it changes based on the contextual level of gender equality. Drawing from the European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions longitudinal microdata we find support for an inverse U-shape relationship between the women’s share of the total couple’s income and transition to parenthood, while a negative relationship is found with transitions to a second child.

This study pioneers the exploration of trauma induced by experiences during childbirth on fertility choices after the first birth. It aligns with the growing focus on the relationship between well-being and demography, emphasizing the body and fertility trade-off.

Using data from a 2023-2024 survey of 2,000 Italian mothers aged 25 to 45, we investigate how traumatic first childbirth experiences are linked to women's transition to the second child and their fertility intentions. We also study the connection between trauma and experiences during childbirth in the realm of body mistreatment.

Traumatic deliveries, whether vaginal, planned, or emergency caesarean sections, are associated with reduced or delayed fertility, as observed in subsequent births and fertility intentions. Some experiences before, during, and immediately after delivery (e.g., immobilization or lack of measures for the reduction of pain) are strongly associated with the perception of childbirth as traumatic. The trauma due to body experiences reduces fertility intentions. These findings underscore the critical need to consider the childbirth experience, particularly trauma and body-related factors, as a central determinant in fertility and demographic studies.

Additionally, we highlight practical implications for healthcare policies and advocate for developing healthcare environments that prioritize mothers' well-being.

With the progress of the gender revolution, more couples wish to have an egalitarian lifestyle. However, parenthood promotes specialized gender roles, which can in turn affect the decision to have another child. While most theoretical frameworks on fertility consider the importance of both paid and unpaid work for fertility transition jointly, previous research generally focused on either one of the two spheres. We address this gap by studying which combinations of paid and unpaid work among couples lead to having a second child, comparing four different contexts: The United Kingdom, Switzerland, and West and East Germany. By exploiting three longitudinal panel surveys (Understanding Society, SHP, and GSOEP), and applying random-effect logistic regression, preliminary findings show how male breadwinner female housewife couples are the most likely to have a second child in the UK and Switzerland, a changing relationship over time in West Germany, and no association in East Germany.