From Union Formation to First Birth: The Role of Age at First Cohabitation in the Transition to Motherhood and Fatherhood

Abstract

The increase in age at first birth is a marker of the family transformations of the last half century. In a country like France, later parenthood partly reflects the fact that unions are formed at older ages and that the timing of entry into union has become disconnected from that of childbearing. These changes raise many issues, such as the risk of involuntary infertility for couples formed at late reproductive ages. Using data from the EPIC survey conducted in France in 2013–2014, the authors suggest that far from submitting to the constraints of their biological clock, both men and women adjust the timing of births in accordance with the age at which they entered their union.