Volume 17 - Article 10 | Pages 247–300  

First union formation in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania: patterns across countries and gender

By Kalev Katus, Allan Puur, Asta Põldma, Luule Sakkeus

Abstract

This article examines the transformation of first union formation in the Baltic countries between the late 1960s and early 1990s, in the context of societal and family-level gender relations. The analyses employ microdata from the European Family and Fertility Surveys program. Our results on the trends indicate that in Estonia and Latvia the shift from direct marriage to cohabitation started well before the fall of socialist regime. Event-history models provide support for a hypothesised association between union formation and gender system, with Lithuania showing more traditional features in both respect, plausibly embedded in long-standing cultural differences between the countries.

Author's Affiliation

• Kalev Katus - Estonian Interuniversity Population Research Centre, Estonia EMAIL
• Allan Puur - Tallinna Ülikool, Estonia EMAIL
• Asta Põldma - Tallinna Ülikool, Estonia EMAIL
• Luule Sakkeus - Tallinna Ülikool, Estonia EMAIL

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