Work

Welfare state context, female earnings and childbearing

Year: 2009
Type: report
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This paper investigates the role of female earnings in childbearing decisions in two very different European contexts.By applying event history techniques to German and Danish register data during 1981-2001, we demonstrate how female earnings relate to first, second and third birth rates.Our study shows that female earnings are rather positively associated with fertility in Denmark, while the relationship is the opposite in West Germany.We interpret our findings based on our observation that Danish social policies tend to encourage Danish women to become established in the labor market before having children, while German policies during the 1980s and 1990s were not designed to encourage maternal employment.
Authors: Gunnar Andersson, Michaela R. Kreyenfeld, Tatjana Mika
Language: English
Subfield: Gender Studies
Open Access status: gold
OpenAlex ID: W1510079457
Cites: 47
Cited by: 18
Related to: 10