Family composition and union dissolution among families with children in Sweden

Partnership stability has decreased substantially in Europe, even among families with children. In parallel, new family forms in which not necessarily both parties of a couple are the biological parents of all the children, have become more common. In this paper, we seek to shed more light on the impact of family composition on the dissolution risk among families with children. We focus on Sweden given its strong emphasis on gender equality and generous family support system. We analyze data from the Young Adult Panel Study, conducted in 1999, 2003 and 2009. Hazard regression (exponential model) is our tool of analysis. Our preliminary results reveal that stepfamilies have an elevated breakup risk, but also blended families are more likely to dissolve than intact families. Stepmother families and where both partners have children from previous partnerships but no joint children have the highest breakup risk. Stepfather families that also include joint children have as low dissolution risk as intact families. Hence, our preliminary results suggest that family compositions have a differential impact on family disruption, and it is important to distinguish by the gender of the stepparent as well as between step- and blended families.