Why Do Lone Mothers Fare Worse than Lone Fathers? Lone Parenthood and Welfare Benefit Receipt in Germany
Autor/in:
Geisler, Esther; Kreyenfeld, Michaela
Quelle: Comparative Population Studies - Zeitschrift für Bevölkerungswissenschaft, 44 (2019) , S 61-84
Inhalt: This article uses data from the German microcensuses of 2007 and 2012 to examine gender differences in welfare reliance among lone parents. Binary logistic regression was employed as the method of analysis. We show that the risk of welfare benefit receipt is lower among lone fathers than lone mothers. We also find that these gender differences can be partially explained by the socio-economic characteristics of lone fathers; compared to lone mothers, lone fathers are, on average, better educated and more likely to be living with older children. Gender differences decreased over time among parents who have never married, but remained constant among divorced parents. We present a discussion of our findings in light of recent policy reforms, in particular the reform of the German Maintenance Law of 2008, which curbed the ability of a divorced parent to collect support from an ex-spouse.
Schlagwörter:Leistungsbezug; father; Sozialhilfeempfänger; sozioökonomische Faktoren; Federal Republic of Germany; Mutter; Unterhalt; labor force participation; labor market policy; poverty; single parent; social policy; Erwerbsbeteiligung; receipt of benefits; Alleinstehender; Armut; Arbeitsmarktpolitik; mother; allein erziehender Elternteil; socioeconomic factors; welfare recipient; gender-specific factors; support; single; Vater; Sozialpolitik; lone parents; German Microcensus (2007 and 2012)
Salmon migration and fertility in East Germany - an analysis of birth dynamics around German reunification
Titelübersetzung:"Salmon migration" und Fertilität in Ostdeutschland - eine Analyse des Geburtenverhaltens nach der Wiedervereinigung
Autor/in:
Kreyenfeld, Michaela; Vatterrott, Anja
Quelle: Zeitschrift für Familienforschung, 30 (2018) 3, S 247-268
Inhalt: This paper uses rich administrative data from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung (German Pension Fund) to describe changes in the timing and the spacing of births that occurred in the period following German reunification. We examine differences in the birth dynamics of East Germans, West Germans, and women who migrated between the two parts of Germany in these years. As the pension registers provide monthly records on whether a person is living in East or West Germany, they also allow us to examine the role of regional mobility in birth behaviour. In particular, we test the "salmon hypothesis", which suggests that migrants are likely to postpone having a child until after or around the time they return to their region of origin. Our investigation shows that a large fraction of the cohorts born in 1965-74 migrated to West Germany after reunification, but that around 50% of these migrants returned to East Germany before reaching age 40. The first birth risks of those who returned were elevated, which suggests that the salmon hypothesis explains the behaviour of a significant fraction of the East German population in the period following German reunification.
Schlagwörter:birth trend; Wiedervereinigung; fertility; demographic factors; remigration; internal migration; Rückwanderung; Federal Republic of Germany; Ost-West-Vergleich; Binnenwanderung; reunification; Geburtenentwicklung; neue Bundesländer; soziale Faktoren; demographische Faktoren; New Federal States; social factors; east-west comparison; Fruchtbarkeit; ordnungsspezifisches Geburtenverhalten; Registerdaten
Quelle: Comparative Population Studies - Zeitschrift für Bevölkerungswissenschaft, 38 (2013) 1, S 29-58
Inhalt: "Ziel dieses Beitrags ist es, die Fertilitätsbiografien im deutschen Generations and Gender Survey (GGS) zu validieren. Die Untersuchungspopulation bilden westdeutsche Frauen der Geburtsjahrgänge 1930-69, für die die durchschnittliche Kinderzahl, die Verteilung der Kinderzahl und die Progressionsraten zum nächsten Kind auf Basis des GGS berechnet und mit anderen Datenquellen verglichen werden. Der zentrale Befund dieser Validierung ist, dass der deutsche GGS die Kinderzahlen der älteren Kohorten unterschätzt und jene der jüngeren Jahrgänge überschätzt. Wir vermuten, dass zwei Mechanismen für dieses Muster verantwortlich sind: Einerseits sind Kinder, die bereits den elterlichen Haushalt verlassen haben, nur lückenhaft erfasst worden. Andererseits sind jüngere Befragte mit kleineren Kindern in der Stichprobe wegen ihrer leichteren Erreichbarkeit überrepräsentiert. Zusammengenommen tragen diese beiden Mechanismen dazu bei, dass die Kinderzahlen der jüngeren Jahrgänge über- und die der älteren Geburtsjahrgänge unterschätzt werden. Die Validierung der Heiratsbiografien offenbart eine ähnliche Schieflage, sodass man folgern muss, dass der deutsche GGS für die Darstellung von Kohortentrends der Fertilität und Nuptialität nicht genutzt werden kann. Vor dem Hintergrund der Erfahrungen mit dem deutschen GGS empfiehlt es sich, in zukünftigen Befragungen bei der retrospektiven Erhebung von umfassenden Fertilitäts- und Partnerschaftsverläufen einfache (Kontroll-)Fragen in das Frageprogramm zu integrieren, um die Angaben in den retrospektiven Modulen überprüfbar zu machen." (Autorenreferat)
Schlagwörter:Fruchtbarkeit; fertility; Partnerschaft; partnership; Heirat; wedding; Kinderzahl; number of children; Federal Republic of Germany; alte Bundesländer; old federal states; Mikrozensus; microcensus; Daten; data; Validierung; validation; Fertilitätsbiografie; Partnerschaftsbiografie; Generations and Gender Survey - GGS
SSOAR Kategorie:Bevölkerung, Erhebungstechniken und Analysetechniken der Sozialwissenschaften
Quelle: Comparative Population Studies - Zeitschrift für Bevölkerungswissenschaft, 38 (2013) 1, S 3-28
Inhalt: "This paper validates the fertility histories of the German Generations and Gender Survey (GGS). Focusing on the cohorts 1930-69 of West German women, the total number of children, the parity distribution and the parity progression ratios are compared to external sources. One major result from this validation is that the German GGS understates the fertility for the older cohorts and overstates it for the younger ones. We presume that two mechanisms are responsible for this pattern in the German GGS: On the one hand, children who have left parental home are underreported in the retrospective fertility histories. On the other hand, women with small children are easier to reach by the interviewer. These two mechanisms taken together produce too low numbers of children for the older and too high ones for the younger cohorts. Extending the validation to marital histories has revealed a similar bias. Our general conclusion from this investigation is that the German GGS may not be used for statistical analyses of cohort fertility and marriage trends. For subsequent surveys, we suggest integrating simple control questions in questionnaires with complex retrospective fertility and union histories." (author's abstract)
Schlagwörter:Fruchtbarkeit; fertility; Partnerschaft; partnership; Heirat; wedding; Kinderzahl; number of children; Federal Republic of Germany; alte Bundesländer; old federal states; Mikrozensus; microcensus; Daten; data; Validierung; validation; fertility history; union history; Generations and Gender Survey - GGS
SSOAR Kategorie:Bevölkerung, Erhebungstechniken und Analysetechniken der Sozialwissenschaften
Time Squeeze, Partner Effect or Self-Selection? An Investigation into the Positive Effect of Women's Education on Second Birth Risks in West Germany
Autor/in:
Kreyenfeld, Michaela
Quelle: Demographic Research, 7 (2002) 2, S 15-48
Inhalt: This paper investigates the role of women’s education in the transition to the second child using data from the 1997 German micro-census. We begin our analysis with a simple model, which shows a positive effect of woman’s education on the transition rate to the second child for West German women. We argue that this effect is most likely confounded by various factors. Firstly, we assume that there is a time-squeeze effect, which increases the transition rate to the second child for more highly educated women. Secondly, titled as the partner hypothesis, we argue that more highly educated women often live with more highly educated partners who have the earning potential to afford a large family. Thirdly, titled as the selection hypothesis, we argue that the positive effect of women’s education can be attributed to a selection effect, i.e. family-oriented college graduates are more likely to select themselves into the group of women at risk of second birth. The empirical investigations particularly support the second and third hypotheses. After controlling for the partner’s characteristics and including unobserved heterogeneity factors, the positive effect of female education becomes strongly negative.
Schlagwörter:Bildung; education; Mikrozensus; microcensus; Frauenerwerbstätigkeit; women's employment; Fruchtbarkeit; fertility; Federal Republic of Germany; Geburt; birth; Partnerwahl; choice of partner; second births
SSOAR Kategorie:Frauen- und Geschlechterforschung, Familiensoziologie, Sexualsoziologie