Table 3.
Proportion of births within cohabitation (vs. marriage) by education, prior childbearing, and parental age, by country
| Respondent Education |
Respondent or Partner Had Children at Union Start |
Respondent Age at Focal Birth |
||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low/Moderate | High | Ratio (low to high) | Either Had Children | Neither Had Children | Ratio (either to neither) | <22 | 22–25 | 26–29 | 30+ | Ratio (<20: 30+) | ||||
| United States | .53 | .10 | 5.5 | * | .65 | .36 | 1.8 | * | .69 | .48 | .28 | .22 | 3.2 | * |
| Norway | .72 | .55 | 1.3 | * | .76 | .56 | 1.3 | * | .83 | .67 | .56 | .60 | 1.4 | * |
| Sweden | .71 | .57 | 1.2 | * | .76 | .62 | 1.2 | * | .68 | .68 | .66 | .60 | 1.1 | |
| United Kingdom | .51 | .30 | 1.7 | * | .61 | .39 | 1.6 | * | .91 | .48 | .32 | .23 | 3.9 | * |
| Austria | .46 | .37 | 1.2 | * | .52 | .43 | 1.2 | * | .64 | .45 | .40 | .40 | 1.6 | * |
| France | .61 | .41 | 1.5 | * | .67 | .50 | 1.3 | * | .84 | .55 | .42 | .53 | 1.6 | * |
| Italy | .10 | .08 | 1.2 | .25 | .07 | 3.4 | * | .21 | .07 | .04 | .10 | 2.1 | ||
| Spain | .31 | .22 | 1.4 | * | .55 | .22 | 2.5 | * | .52 | .38 | .24 | .24 | 2.1 | * |
Notes: Ns are unweighted. All means are weighted using SVY procedures in STATA 12. Characteristics are measured in the month of the couple’s first birth together.
Source: Harmonized Histories and the 2006–2010 and 2011–2013 National Survey of Family Growth (women only, under 45 years). Sample is limited to couples with a first child together within 10 years of interview.
*
Difference in proportion cohabiting is statistically different between groups compared in the ratio column (two-way t-tests)