Laboratory

Fertility and Well-Being

At a Glance Projects Publications Team

Detailed Description

© kallejipp / photocase.com

The early 21st century presents us with substantial variation in fertility patterns across the globe. At the same time, several regularities persist across societies. Fertility postponement is occurring in high-income as well as in many middle- and low-income countries. In most high-income contexts, fertility has remained low, though populations differ in their response to recent declines and short-term recoveries. Social stratification continues to shape family formation processes, contributing to persistent variation in fertility differentials by educational attainment, socioeconomic position, and partnership context. In addition, long-standing regularities, such as the negative relationship between fertility and socioeconomic development, appear to be subject to shifts in highly developed settings.

Research in the Laboratory of Fertility and Well-Being focuses on improving understanding of the determinants and consequences of contemporary fertility trends. We focus in particular on how socioeconomic development, economic uncertainty, partnership dynamics, and institutional change shape fertility behavior. The role of uncertainty, including economic insecurity and large-scale shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic, is examined in relation to fertility and union formation. A recurring theme across projects is heterogeneity in fertility dynamics across educational groups, labor-market positions, and partnership trajectories.

We study fertility postponement and changing family trajectories in relation to parental age patterns, partnership histories, and family complexity. And we examine the associations between fertility behavior and health from multiple perspectives, including the role of mental health in childlessness, maternal health in the context of medically assisted reproduction, and links between pregnancy intentions, family structure, and child outcomes. These analyses broaden understanding of how fertility and well-being are interconnected at both individual and population levels.

The diversification of family forms is another central focus of the Laboratory. In comparative research, we investigate union formation, union instability, and repartnering across regions and institutional contexts, also explicitly considering same-sex couples. Male and female fertility trends are analyzed in comparative and subnational perspective, with attention to regional imbalances and partnership markets as potential drivers of childlessness and fertility differences.

Across the research areas, emphasis is placed on population-level trends and the micro-macro mechanisms underlying them. Using longitudinal register data, large-scale surveys, and comparative designs, we  examine how socioeconomic conditions, institutional change, partnership dynamics, and health intersect to shape fertility trajectories over time.