Correlates of Lifetime Childlessness across two British Cohorts: A Biosocial Perspective

Alice Goisis , UCL
Sam Parson, University College London
Aase Villadsen, UCL

Childlessness has increased in the UK across successive birth cohorts and remains higher among men than women. While previous research has focused mainly on social or biological determinants, we adopt a biosocial approach to examine how early-life socioeconomic background, education, health, cognitive development and partnership trajectories to shape fertility outcomes. Using harmonised fertility histories from two nationally representative British birth cohort studies (born 1958 and 1970), we compare lifetime childlessness at age 50 for men and women. Preliminary results show that partnership history is the strongest predictor: over 80% of women and over 90% of men who never cohabited or married remained childless. For women, childlessness is also more common among those with higher education and stronger childhood cognition, while poor health and mental health difficulties increase risks for both sexes. Findings highlight how social advantage and health disadvantage combine across the life course, producing gendered and cohort-specific biosocial pathways into childlessness.

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 Presented in Session P3. Families, Fertility, and the Life Course 3