Stockholm university

Sofi Ohlsson WijkResearcher

Research projects

Publications

A selection from Stockholm University publication database

  • Sweden's marriage revival

    2011. Sofi Ohlsson-Wijk. Population Studies 65 (2), 183-200

    Article

    Usually seen as a forerunner in the development of new trends in family-demographic behaviour, Sweden has recently experienced a reversal in marriage trends, from a steady decline in marriage rate between the 1960s and 1990s, to a steady increase beginning in 1998. An event-history analysis of women’s first marriages in the period 1991-2007, using register data, shows that compositional changes in labour-market activity and childbearing can only partly explain the reversal, and that apparently no part of it is explained by compositional changes in age, country of birth, educational level, and type of settlement. The evidence suggests that the popularity of marriage in Sweden is increasing, in contrast to what might be expected from the way demographic trends in Sweden and other Western countries are often portrayed in the literature.

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  • Digit preferences in marriage formation in Sweden

    2014. Sofi Ohlsson-Wijk. Demographic Research 30, 739-752

    Article

    BACKGROUND

    Digit preferences are normally seen as potentially harmful biases in respondents’ reports. Possibly such preferences might also be the cause of some patterns found in Swedish marriage formation, thus affecting actual demographic behavior.

    OBJECTIVE

    Digit preferences in marriage formation in Sweden are examined − more specifically, the additional propensity to marry for the first time during the year 2000 or at ages ending with 0 − and their demographic and socioeconomic correlates.

    METHODS

    Event-history analyses are applied to Swedish register data covering 3.5 million men and women in 1991−2007.

    RESULTS

    First-marriage risks clearly increase for both men and women at exact ages 30, 40, 50, and 60 and in the year 2000. These patterns exist across demographic and socioeconomic groups and are not due to measurement error or random variation.

    CONCLUSIONS

    The timing of marriage is not strictly determined by conventional demographic or socioeconomic factors. Whether the findings are idiosyncratic to contexts like the Swedish, where there are small differences between marriage and cohabitation, remains to be answered.

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  • Family Formation in Sweden around the Turn of the New Millennium

    2015. Sofi Ohlsson-Wijk (et al.).

    Thesis (Doc)

    This thesis contains four empirical studies that examine patterns in family formation in Sweden around the turn of the new millennium. This is an interesting context for the topic because Sweden is often seen as a forerunner in family-demographic change as well as in gender equality and value developments. The empirical studies provide insight into the state of affairs of these developments. In all four studies, event-history analyses are applied to Swedish population register data. Two of the studies focus on first-marriage formation, while the other two focus on first childbearing. Study I reveals that starting from 1998 there was an increase in marriage-formation rates, which was not due to compositional changes in the population. This is in contrast to the common image of Sweden in the forefront of contemporary marriage decline. Study II shows that marriage rates for men and women display clear peaks at exact ages 30, 40, 50, and 60 as well as in the year 2000. The peaks demonstrate that in Sweden, marriage formation is not fully determined by conventional structural factors or individual characteristics. It illustrates that the choice to marry may be taken quite lightly in a context where differences between cohabitation and marriage are relatively small. Study III shows that the transition to parenthood varies across occupational groups. For both men and women, birth rates are positively related to own earnings. Birth rates are also high for those who work in a caring or teaching oriented occupation or in a gender-typical occupation. The findings may reflect differences in the possibility to take on parental responsibilities and they demonstrate the role of gendered behavior. Self-selection processes may also be important. In Study IV, the transition to parenthood for men and women is examined in relation to the sex composition of the workplace. Birth rates increase with the share of employees of the individual’s own sex, net of factors such as own earnings, public or private sector employment, occupation, and industry. This shows the importance of gender and gender structures in the work environment for childbearing behavior. 

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  • Women have a stronger say in couples' decisions to have a child

    2017. Ann-Zofie Duvander (et al.). Sociologisk forskning 54 (4), 307-312

    Article

    Sweden stands out as a forerunner in the development of gender equality and family dynamics. To deepen the knowledge on power distribution and gender dynamics of couple relations, we investigate how women and men's childbearing intentions influence actual childbearing behavior. The Young Adult Panel Study (YAPS) has information on both partners' childbearing intentions in 2009, which we follow for five years with register data on childbearing. The results indicate that women's childbearing intentions are more important than men's intentions in determining actual childbirths.

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  • Sharing the Caring

    2018. Maria Brandén, Ann-Zofie Duvander, Sofi Ohlsson-Wijk. Journal of family issues 39 (3), 771-795

    Article

    Even though ideals in favor of gender equality in the private sphere are wide spread, discrepancies between ideals and actual behavior are common. Such discrepancies and potential dissatisfaction with gender unequal behavior within a couple are expected to influence partnership dynamics negatively. This study examines how discrepancies between the perceived ideal sharing of parental leave and the actual division of leave, as well as satisfaction with the division are associated with (a) relationship satisfaction, (b) continued childbearing, and (c) union dissolution, using Swedish panel data. The findings cannot confirm an effect of discrepancies on partnership dynamics. However, men who wish they had used a larger share of the parental leave have lower relationship satisfaction, lower continued childbearing, and higher probability of union dissolution. Women are seemingly not affected by their (dis)satisfaction with the division. The findings may reflect a changing father role related to the policy setting and norms in Sweden.

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