Book Chapter

Timing of first birth in East Germany after reunification

Kreyenfeld, M. R.
In: Holst, E., Lillard, D. R., Di Prete, T. A. (Eds.): Proceedings of the 2000 Fourth International Conference of German Socio-Economic Panel Study Users. Vierteljahrsheft zur Wirtschaftsforschung 70(1), 74–79 (2001)

Abstract

When German reunification was accompanied by a rapid decline in aggregate fertility rates, researchers particularly assigned high unemployment rates a dominant role for changes in fertility behavior. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, we investigate changes in the timing of first birth in East Germany after reunification. Using data from the GSOEP, we show that even after reunification East Germans are younger at first birth than their West German counterparts. Second, we investigate the relationship between male and female unemployment and first birth risks. A major result is that female unemployment fosters the transition into parenthood in East Germany.
The Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR) in Rostock is one of the leading demographic research centers in the world. It's part of the Max Planck Society, the internationally renowned German research society.