The educational gradient in young singlehood: The role of gender and the gender climate

Lonneke van den Berg
Additional contact information
Lonneke van den Berg: Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen

Demographic Research, 2023, vol. 48, issue 6, 153-188

Abstract: Background: Universities are described as “waiting halls” for union formation. However, little is known about the size of the educational gradient in single living after leaving home. Objective: This paper examines the educational gradient in single living after leaving home in 30 European countries and the role of gender and the gender climate in each country for this gradient. Methods: I use data from the European Social Survey, supplemented with data from the OECD and European Values Study for the contextual measures. Predicted probabilities for single living are compared across educational groups, genders, and countries. Using random slope models with an interaction between education and the gender climate, I examine whether the educational gradient is larger in less gender-egalitarian countries. Results: The results show, on average, a positive educational gradient in single living after leaving home. However, there is substantial variation in its size. First, the gradient is larger among women. Second, there are cross-national differences in the size of the gradient and gender differences in the gradient. The cross-national variation depends on the gender climate in the country. Among women, the educational gradient is smaller in countries with a higher women’s labor force participation. Conclusions: The results show that stratification in single living after leaving home is especially prominent among women in less gender-egalitarian countries. Contribution: The article presents a comprehensive overview of the educational gradient in single living after leaving home by gender and country, demonstrating the importance of the gender climate.

Keywords: living alone; young adults; educational gradient; gender climate (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J1 Z0 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol48/6/48-6.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:dem:demres:v:48:y:2023:i:6

DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2023.48.6

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Demographic Research from Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Editorial Office ().