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Regional family cultures and child care by grandparents in Europe

Author

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  • Maaike Jappens

    (Vrije Universiteit Brussels)

  • Jan Van Bavel

    (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven)

Abstract

Background: Child care is widely considered a key issue in confronting demographic change in Europe today, given its centrality in the labour market participation of parents, and of mothers in particular. There are considerable international differences in child care practices throughout Europe, and earlier comparative research has indicated that structural factors do not suffice to explain them. Objective: We investigate whether or not, next to structural differences, cultural factors also play a role in European international variations in child care practices, and more specifically the use of grandparental child care. Methods: Using the second wave of the European Social Survey, this paper scores subnational regions of 23 European countries on different dimensions of family norms and practices. We construct regional indicators and use them in a multilevel analysis of the use of grandparents as the main source of child care by European mothers. Results: Results show that European mothers' reliance on grandparental child care is influenced by individual characteristics and the supply of formal child care, but also by the normative climate in the region they live in. Irrespective of the attitudes individually held, we find that mothers in more conservative regions are more inclined to use grandparents as the main source of child care instead of formal alternatives. Conclusions: European patterns of child care use are not only subject to structural factors as the supply of formal care provisions for children. Preferences and attitudes prevalent in the regions in which young parents live form an important part of the picture too.

Suggested Citation

  • Maaike Jappens & Jan Van Bavel, 2012. "Regional family cultures and child care by grandparents in Europe," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 27(4), pages 85-120.
    • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:27:y:2012:i:4
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2012.27.4
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Marco Albertini & Marco Tosi, 2018. "Grandparenting after parental divorce: The association between non-resident parent–child meetings and grandparenting in Italy," European Journal of Ageing, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 277-286, September.
    2. Roberta Rutigliano, 2020. "Counting on Potential Grandparents? Adult Children’s Entry Into Parenthood Across European Countries," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 57(4), pages 1393-1414, August.
    3. Paul Mathews & Rebecca Sear, 2013. "Family and Fertility: Kin Influence on the Progression to a Second Birth in the British Household Panel Study," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(3), pages 1-10, March.
    4. Tosi, Marco & Grundy, Emily, 2018. "Returns home by children and changes in parents’ well-being in Europe," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 99-106.
    5. Linda Kridahl, 2017. "Retirement timing and grandparenthood: A population-based study on Sweden," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 37(31), pages 957-994.
    6. Thijs van den Broek & Emily Grundy, 2017. "Loneliness among Polish migrants in the Netherlands: The impact of presence and location of partners and offspring," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 37(23), pages 727-742.
    7. Thijs van den Broek & Marco Tosi, 2020. "The More the Merrier? The Causal Effect of High Fertility on Later-Life Loneliness in Eastern Europe," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 149(2), pages 733-748, June.
    8. Giorgio Di Gessa & Karen Glaser & Anthea Tinker, 2016. "The Health Impact of Intensive and Nonintensive Grandchild Care in Europe: New Evidence From SHARE," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 71(5), pages 867-879.
    9. Anna Giraldo & Gianpiero Dalla-Zuanna & Enrico Rettore, 2015. "Childcare and participation at work in North-East Italy: Why do Italian and foreign mothers behave differently?," Statistical Methods & Applications, Springer;Società Italiana di Statistica, vol. 24(2), pages 339-358, July.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Europe; family; grandparents; childcare; intergenerational support;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

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