Mieke Jansen
Abstract:
This Ph.D. research studies the impact of objective as well as subjective labour market uncertainty on processes of family formation within a European perspective. In particular, this study aims at broadening our understanding of the ongoing postponement of marriage and childbearing in the late 20th century, a time characterised by a globalising economy and social and cultural networks. It has been suggested that the process of globalisation causes structural uncertainty in several fields, not in the least in the field of employment. Life long job security has decreased and temporary employment is on the rise. This especially applies to young, low educated adults. Job uncertainty possibly interferes with decisions in the private sphere, with young adults postponing decisions that entail long term commitment like marriage and parenthood. In addition, levels of job uncertainty and structural uncertainty more in general, are likely to differ between institutional settings. This might partially account for discrepancies in marriage and birth timing across countries. These research questions are studied using data from the European Community Household Panel, a longitudinal panel that ran from 1994 to 2001, encompassing about 15 European countries.
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