Catalysts or Competitors: Siblings, Leaving the Parental Home, and Migration Background

Charvi Arora , University of Groningen
Clara H. Mulder, University of Groningen
Yu-Chin Her, Population Research Centre, University of Groningen
Roselinde van der Wiel, University of Groningen

While much research has focused on the impact of parents on the transition to adulthood, the specific role of siblings has received relatively little attention. The current study examines the effect of siblings’ transition out of the parental home on the individual’s likelihood of leaving home along two pathways—to live alone or to live with a partner—with an added focus on the migration background of the individual. Drawing on longitudinal register micro-data from Statistics Netherlands, we followed young adults aged 16-28 between the years 2012 to 2023 (N = 1,165,709 person-years). The preliminary analysis used discrete-time event history modelling, with an interaction between the sibling’s pathway of leaving home and migration background of the individual. The findings indicate that siblings act as a catalyst for the transition of leaving the parental home, wherein the departure of a sibling increases the likelihood of leaving home. The departure of a sibling to live with a partner also encouraged the other to follow the same pathway. Additionally, compared to the native Dutch population, the effect of siblings on leaving the parental home was more positive for people with a Turkish or Moroccan migration background. These findings have the potential to inform policies in supporting young adults’ transition out of the parental home. Future research can be aimed towards exploring how these sibling effects relate with other actors, such as peers.

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 Presented in Session 82. Linked lives: Sibling Contexts and the Life Course