Ann Berrington

Marital dissolution among the 1958 British birth cohort: The role of cohabitation

This paper investigates the effect of previous cohabitation on marital stability among the 1958 British birth cohort. Prospective data from the National Child Development Study are used to investigate the way in which family background factors and early lifecourse experiences, including cohabitation, affect the risk of first marriage dissolution by age 33. Discrete time logistic regression hazards models are used to analyse the risk of separation in the first eight years of marriage. Many socio-economic and family background factors are found to act through more intermediate determinants, such as age at marriage and the timing of childbearing, to affect the risk of separation. Previous cohabitation with another partner and premarital cohabitation are both associated with higher rates of marital breakdown. The effect of premarital cohabitation is attenuated but remains significant once the characteristics of cohabitors are controlled, and cannot be explained by the longer time spent in a partnership.

Gender, Turning Points, and Boomerangs: Returning Home in Young Adulthood in Great Britain

The idea of a generation of young adults “boomeranging” back to the parental home has gained widespread currency in the British popular press. However, there is little empirical research identifying either increasing rates of returning home or the factors associated with this trend. This article addresses this gap in the literature using data from a long-running household panel survey to examine the occurrence and determinants of returning to the parental home. We take advantage of the longitudinal design of the British Household Panel Survey (1991–2008) and situate returning home in the context of other life-course transitions. We demonstrate how turning points in an individual’s life course—such as leaving full-time education, unemployment, or partnership dissolution—are key determinants of returning home. An increasingly unpredictable labor market means that employment cannot be taken for granted following university graduation, and returning home upon completion of higher education is becoming normative. We also find that gender moderates the relationship among partnership dissolution, parenthood, and returning to the parental home, reflecting the differential welfare support in Great Britain for single parents compared with nonresident fathers and childless young adults.

Marriage or cohabitation: a competing risks analysis of first‐partnership formation among the 1958 British birth cohort

A discrete time competing risks hazards model is used to analyse entry into first partnership among men and women born in Britain in 1958. Using a life-course approach we identify family background and current life experiences which affect the timing and type of first-partnership formation. Education is a key factor influencing the age of entry into first partnership and whether or not the respondent will experience pregnancy before forming the partnership. Religiosity, experience of parental separation and the geographical region of residence are more important in affecting the decision to cohabit rather than to marry directly. The analyses highlight the importance of transitions in other domains such as leaving the parental home in encouraging cohabitation.

Marriage and family formation among the white and ethnic minority populations in Britain

Abstract Recent UK Labour Force Survey data are used to investigate marriage and family formation among the white and ethnic minority populations in Britain. The different age‐sex structures of the white and ethnic minority groups are analysed and the increasing number of UK‐born or ‘second‐generation’ persons identified. Large differentials are seen between ethnic minority groups in the propensity to cohabit, marry and experience marital disruption. Average spousal age differences and the propensity to form interethnic unions are also distinctive. Resulting patterns of family and household composition are described. In particular, the data suggest important divergences between individuals of Indian and those of Pakistani and Bangladeshi ethnic origin, such that we cannot talk about the demography of the South Asian population as a whole. Comparisons of marriage patterns among ‘first‐’ and ‘second‐generation’ individuals within each ethnic group suggest some assimilation in marriage patterns among the Ind...

Stability and change in fertility intentions in Britain, 1991–2007

The very low fertility experienced in several European countries in recent decades in the presence of higher intended family sizes has renewed interest in fertility intentions data. While the overall level of childbearing in Britain over the past few decades has remained relatively stable and high in comparison with many other European countries, we have seen sizeable increases in the age at which childbearing starts. This study uses data from the 1991 to 2007 General Household Surveys to examine trends in family intentions data in an attempt to arrive at a better understanding of these recent fertility developments. First, time trends in intended family size are compared with trends in observed fertility. Next, aggregate changes in intentions regarding the level and timing of fertility across the life course for cohorts are investigated together with the extent to which these aggregate intentions are matched by the subsequent childbearing of cohorts. Finally, both change across the life course and uncertainty in family intentions are examined. We conclude by discussing what these findings might tell us about contemporary reproductive decision making.

Childbearing Following Marital Dissolution in Britain

This paper investigates the subsequent fertility of British women who have experienced the dissolution of their first marriage in recent decades. Data for 7739 women from the 1990–1995 General Household Surveys are used to examine the socio-demographic factors associated with experiencing a post-dissolution birth. Just under one half of women who had experienced marital dissolution went on to experience a conception within twelve years. A womens age and her repartnering status are shown to be the factors most strongly associated with the probability of a post-dissolution conception. The age of a womans youngest child is found to be more strongly associated with her likelihood of experiencing a conception than her parity at marital dissolution.

Comparing the odds of postpartum haemorrhage in planned home birth against planned hospital birth: results of an observational study of over 500,000 maternities in the UK

BackgroundThe aim of this study is to compare the odds of postpartum haemorrhage among women who opt for home birth against the odds of postpartum haemorrhage for those who plan a hospital birth. It is an observational study involving secondary analysis of maternity records, using binary logistic regression modelling. The data relate to pregnancies that received maternity care from one of fifteen hospitals in the former North West Thames Regional Health Authority Area in England, and which resulted in a live or stillbirth in the years 1988–2000 inclusive, excluding ‘high-risk’ pregnancies, unplanned home births, pre-term births, elective Caesareans and medical inductions.ResultsEven after adjustment for known confounders such as parity, the odds of postpartum haemorrhage (≥1000ml of blood lost) are significantly higher if a hospital birth is intended than if a home birth is intended (odds ratio 2.5, 95% confidence interval 1.7 to 3.8). The ‘home birth’ group included women who were transferred to hospital during labour or shortly after birth.ConclusionsWomen and their partners should be advised that the risk of PPH is higher among births planned to take place in hospital compared to births planned to take place at home, but that further research is needed to understand (a) whether the same pattern applies to the more life-threatening categories of PPH, and (b) why hospital birth is associated with increased odds of PPH. If it is due to the way in which labour is managed in hospital, changes should be made to practices which compromise the safety of labouring women.

The Changing Demography of Mid‐life, from the 1980s to the 2000s

This article examines changes between 1984 and 2007 in the demographic and socio‐economic circumstances of British men and women in mid‐life. Changing living arrangements in mid‐life reflect historical changes in the occurrence and timing of life events such as marriage and parenthood, as well as increased longevity. In order to place mid‐life in this wider demographic context, the article first reviews changes over time in kin availability across the adult life course using the British Household Panel Survey (2001) and Understanding Society (2009). The article goes on to use data from the General Household Survey (1984–2007) to document shifts over time in living arrangements for those aged 20– 79. In the final part of the article we focus specifically on those aged between 45 and 64 and examine how their characteristics in terms of marital status, educational attainment, activity status and housing tenure have changed over the past quarter century.

The methodological challenges of attempting to compare the safety of home and hospital birth in terms of the risk of perinatal death

This paper identifies a number of methodological difficulties associated with the comparison of home and hospital birth in terms of the risk of perinatal death, and suggests ways in which these problems can be overcome. A review of recent studies suggests that most available data sources are unable to overcome all of these challenges, which is one of the reasons why the debate about whether perinatal death is more likely if a home birth is planned or if a hospital birth is planned has not been satisfactorily resolved. We argue that the debate will be settled only if perinatal mortality data from a sufficiently large number of maternity care providers over a sufficiently long period of time can be pooled and made available for analysis. The pooling of data will bring about its own difficulties due to variations over time and between providers and geographical areas, which would need to be taken into account when analysing pooled data. However, given the impracticality of a randomised controlled trial and the rarity of home birth in most of the Western world, we argue that more effort should be made to pool data for perinatal mortality and other rare pregnancy outcomes, and share them between health providers and researchers. Thus, high-quality analyses could be conducted, allowing all women to make an informed choice about place of birth. However, pooling data from countries or states with very different maternity care systems should be avoided.

Civil partnerships five years on.

The Civil Partnership Act 2004, which came into force in December 2005 allowing same‐sex couples in the UK to register their relationship for the first time, celebrated its fifth anniversary in December 2010. This article examines civil partnership in England and Wales, five years on from its introduction. The characteristics of those forming civil partnerships between 2005 and 2010 including age, sex and previous marital/civil partnership status are examined. These are then compared with the characteristics of those marrying over the same period. Further comparisons are also made between civil partnership dissolutions and divorce. The article presents estimates of the number of people currently in civil partnerships and children of civil partners. Finally the article examines attitudes towards same‐sex and civil partner couples both in the UK and in other countries across Europe.