In a recent study, Francesco C. Billari, Osea Giuntella and Luca Stella analysed whether the availability of high-speed Internet influences fertility choices in Germany. The authors worked with data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). It is a unique dataset because it provides information on fertility histories, availability of Internet access, and also on whether Internet access is based on broadband (DSL) technology.

Many societies, particularly in the Nordic region, have made efforts over the last decades to create more gender-equal family leave policies. These policies are supposed to encourage fathers to take time off from work to help care for their children by making it easier to do so. Once these policies are in place, it is a matter of making sure fathers actually take advantage of them. Jussi Tervola, Ann-Zofie Duvander and Eleonora Mussino took a close look at these policies to see if immigrant fathers are also using these benefits to take time off from work to help care for their children.

It is well known that having a child requires some lifestyle adjustments. Parenthood can hinder the wellbeing of new parents since it is difficult to combine the demands of a child with work and leisure. In this study, A. Roeters, J.J. Mandemakers and M. Voorpostel  take into account the lifestyle differences of individuals before becoming parents. Using data from eleven waves of the Swiss Household Panel, the researchers investigate to what extent individuals’ participation in leisure activities and paid work moderates the effects of parenthood on wellbeing.

In the last decades, partnership markets in Europe have experienced an increase in so-called “secondary singles”, meaning individuals who have been married in the past and who are now ready to start a new relationship. For some of them, dating someone who has children may be undesirable, since taking the role of a step-parent is associated with anticipated relationship stress. 

When women in Europe become mothers this often negatively affects their labour market position. Even though employment levels of migrant women are comparably low in general, little is known how motherhood affects their working life.