BACKGROUND

Studies on children and divorce in China find a negative association between the number of children and divorce and a protective effect of having a son. Nonetheless, we have little knowledge of how these associations have developed over time.

OBJECTIVE

This study explored the association of the number and sex composition of children with divorce risks in China over the period 1980–2012.

METHODS

We conducted an event history analysis of longitudinal data from the China Family Panel Studies.

RESULTS

Childless couples had an increasingly higher divorce risk than couples with children over our observation period. In the 2000s, the divorce risk of childless couples in both urban and rural areas was approximately five times that of one-child parents. The role of the child’s gender differs for urban and rural one-child parents, with no significant effect on the divorce risk of urban parents and different effects over time for rural parents.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings show that ending a marriage when having no children has become an increasingly pronounced trend. Furthermore, partially due to the rapid socioeconomic and demographic progress and the rise of girls’ empowerment, the child’s gender has lost importance for the divorce risk of urban parents.

CONTRIBUTION

This study enriches our knowledge about the association between children and divorce risks in a rapidly developing society. Indirectly, the study also informs us about the evolution of son preference in China.

This study investigated divorce during China’ssocial and economic transformation period from1970 to 2012. Specifically, the study examinedthe trend development of divorce and demonstratedhow marriage formation type and individualsocioeconomic characteristics were associatedwith the likelihood of divorce across time.Event-history analysis was applied to longitudinaldata from the China Family Panel Studies(2010–2012 waves). The results showed a threefoldincrease in divorce from the pre-1990s tothe 1990s. Surprisingly, the trend shifted to aplateau toward the 2000s. When cohabitationwas in its rapidly diffusing stage in the 1990s,individuals who cohabited prior to marriage hada substantially higher likelihood of divorce. Ascohabitation became increasingly common inthe 2000s, its effect on divorce weakened. Therole of socioeconomic characteristics in divorcealso varied across time. This study enriches the knowledge of family dynamics in contemporaryChinese society.

The lack of couple-level data hinders direct exploration of how inconsistencies in couples' housework reports structure their relationship quality. We address this limitation by applying Swedish data from the 2009 Young Adult Panel Study (N = 1057 couples) matched with Swedish register data (2009-2014) to extend equity theory by estimating mismatch in couples' housework reports on relationship satisfaction and stability. We find women who report performing more housework are less likely to be satisfied with their relationships, and are more likely to consider breaking up. These unions are also more likely to dissolve. Using both partners' housework reports, we document discrediting women's housework contribution, or reporting she does less than she reports, is associated with lower relationship satisfaction. Women in these partnerships also consider breaking up, and the unions are more likely to dissolve. Our results identify the gendered impact of housework inequality on relationship stability.

OBJECTIVES: Parental support has been shown to be important for children's self-esteem, which in turn is related to later important life outcomes. Today, an increasing number of children in the Western world spend time in both the parents' respective households after a separation. Children who live with both parents report more parental support than children who live only with one parent after a divorce. We took the opportunity of the commonness of children sharing their time between their parents' homes in Sweden to investigate children's self-esteem in relation to family type.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: With nationally representative survey data (ULF) collected from both parents and children, we analyze differences in children's self-esteem among 4823 10-18 year olds in nuclear families, joint physical custody and those living mostly or only with one parent after a separation using ordinary least squares regression, adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.

RESULTS: We found no significant difference in self-esteem between children who lived equally much with both parents, mostly with one parent and those in nuclear families, whereas children in single care showed lower self-esteem compared with children in the other living arrangements. The difference was not explained by socioeconomic factors.

CONCLUSION: The self-esteem of children who share their time between their parent's respective homes after a separation does not deviate from that in their peers in nuclear families. Instead, those in single care reported lower self-esteem than those in the other living arrangements. These differences were not explained by socioeconomic factors. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish pre- and post-separation family characteristics that influence self-esteem and well-being in young people.

This article studies shared physical custody in Sweden, the country in the world where the phenomenon is most prevalent. We ask whether children in sharedphysical custody settings are more likely to report high levels of stress compared to children living in sole custody. The analysis is based on data with combined information fromparents, children, and administrative registers. Themodels are controlled control for interparental as well as parent–child relationship quality and parents' income. The results show that children sharing residence equally have lower likelihood of experiencing high levels of stress. The results can be interpreted as evidence for a positive effect of continuing everyday-like parental relationships after a family dissolution.