Patterns of Partnership and Childbearing in Latin America: Changes in Family Formation from the 1970s to the 2020s

This dissertation examines the evolution of partnership and childbearing patterns in Latin America over the past six decades, focusing on variations by socioeconomic status. It updates and expands on previous research and addresses gaps in the literature on the relationship between educational attainment and family forms. This research integrates insights from the Dual Nuptiality System framework, and the theories of the Second Demographic Transition, the Pattern of Disadvantage, and Diverging Destinies to examine how socioeconomic factors shape living arrangements and family formation in the region. The dissertation begins with a comprehensive discussion of the relevant literature and theoretical frameworks, as well as the data and methods used for the analysis. I then present a history of the evolution of the unique systems of union formation and childbearing prevalent in Latin America. The material in this chapter is all drawn from existing sources, but this is the first time that it has been synthesised in this way. I then proceed to three chapters which present the results of empirical analysis. The first empirical chapter uses census and household survey data to analyse changes in union type and the family structures into which children are born across 17 Latin American countries and spanning the period between the 1970s to the 2020s. Results from descriptive and multivariate analysis show a clear increase in the prevalence of nonmarital cohabitation and of children born into cohabiting and single-mother families. I demonstrate a clear educational gradient, with formal marriage associated with higher levels of education. Previous research has suggested that this educational gradient is decreasing over time; I show that there is substantial heterogeneity between countries and show that the persistence of the educational gradient is driven largely by increasing differences between the behaviour of women educated to university and secondary levels. The second empirical chapter employs data from the Demographic and Health Surveys and event history analysis techniques to examine changes in the timing and type of first union in seven Latin American countries. The findings indicate that cohabitation as the first union has significantly increased among women born in younger cohorts, especially low-educated women. This chapter also reveals that women with higher education marry at older ages, while the timing of first unions for women with lower education remains unchanged. The third empirical chapter investigates the family trajectories experienced by children in Colombia and Mexico from a life-course perspective. Using descriptive analysis, Cox proportional hazards models and competing risks models, I investigate the factors associated with children’s experience of the dissolution of parental relationships; I also examine the factors associated with parental (re-) partnering, which has not previously been studied in the Latin American context. I find that children born into cohabiting unions are considerably more likely to experience parental separation and to transition to a single-mother family; the mother’s educational level does not affect the probability of parental separation once the effects of cohabitation are taken into account, but that for children, having a highly-educated mother is associated with being born into a marital union, and transitioning into a married family from a cohabiting or single-mother family. Overall, results suggest that several factors associated with the Second Demographic Transition are evident in Latin America. Cohabitation is increasingly prevalent as a living arrangement for couples and a family structure into which children are born. Single-mother families are increasingly prevalent, both as the family form into which children are born and one into which they transition during childhood. Children in Latin America are facing increased family instability due to rising rates of parental separation. These trends are observed across the entire continent, and across all educational groups. However, the findings also highlight the persistence of Latin America’s historic dual nuptiality system, where highly educated women are more likely to marry, have children within marriage and transition to marriage compared to their less educated counterparts; in this sense, Latin America, and some parts of Latin America in particular, stand apart from the rest of the world. The rise of nonmarital cohabitation, particularly among less-educated women, and its greater instability compared to marriage have major implications. Firstly, there is an urgent need to increase awareness and strengthen the enforcement of property, maintenance, and inheritance rights for women in cohabiting relationships. Ensuring these legal protections can help reduce the economic vulnerabilities faced by women and their children. Secondly, the higher instability associated with cohabiting unions means that children born into these family structures are more likely to experience parental separation and family transitions. This pattern of family formation contributes to social inequality and perpetuates the cycle of poverty across generations.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

Doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Cambridge

Year dc:date.issued

2025

Author dc:creator

• Wiegand Cruz, María del Pilar

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Iacovou, Maria

• Diverging Destinies
• Dual Nuptiality System
• Latin America
• Pattern of Disadvantage
• Second Demographic Transition

Licence

• https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/03d007aa-cedc-4636-9254-96cb893b9c1e/download
• http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved

Language dc:language

eng

DOI dc:identifier.doi

https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.118274

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/384194