Cohort fertility patterns and education in the Nordic countries

Trude Lappegård, Statistics Norway
Gunnar Andersson, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research
Lisbeth B. Knudsen, Aalborg University
Marit Rønsen, Statistics Norway

Previous analyses of period fertility suggest that the Nordic trends are sufficiently similar to speak of a common "Nordic fertility regime". We investigate whether this is also true for cohort fertility by studying cumulated and completed fertility of birth-cohorts based on the childbearing histories of women born in 1935 and later derived from the population registers of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Island. The results show remarkable similarities in postponement and recuperation between the countries. Median childbearing age is about 2-3 years higher in the 1960-64-cohort than in the 1950-54-cohort, but the younger cohort recuperates the fertility level of the older cohort during their 30s. Childlessness is highest in Finland and lowest in Norway, but the educational differences are largest in Norway. For the other countries and for cumulated fertility the educational differences are fairly small. Generally, the cohort analyses thus support the notion of a common Nordic fertility regime.