When Demography Meets Culture: Interactions Between Family Dynamics and Living Arrangements

Rita Trias Prats , Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Anna Turu, Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics

In Spain, fertility rates are lower and family formation occurs later than in Sweden; yet, Spanish households tend to be larger on average. Using Swedish register data (2019) and Spanish ECEPOV data (2021), we compare intergenerational co-residence levels from both the children’s and parents’ perspectives, accounting for kin availability. We analyze how co-residence varies by gender, age, education, marital status, and other sociodemographic characteristics, and decompose cross-national differences into compositional and behavioral components. Preliminary results suggest that Swedes tend to leave the parental home at an earlier age, and older adults live independently. In Spain, delayed home-leaving and intergenerational co-residence remain prevalent. We argue that this reflects enduring differences in family systems despite similar demographic change.

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 Presented in Session 21. Housing and Living Arrangements