Changes in family formation trajectories among russians and factors for such changes

In the last few decades, demographers have observed changes in the way individuals organize their lives. This study is devoted to comparing Russia with other European countries in terms of matrimonial behavior modernization, as well as to identifying clusters of Russians depending on their family formation trajectories, analyzing the spread of modern trajectories among generations of Russians born from 1935 to 1984, and identifying factors for choosing particular trajectory. Parameters of family formation behavior, available in the second wave of the “Generation and Gender Programme” international survey, show that Russia follows a common modernization path with European countries. The results of a cluster analysis, based on panel data from the Russian part of the “Generation and Gender Programme”, revealed 9 clusters of Russians, according to the sequence and time of first cohabitation, marriage and childbirth. Such trajectories as “early marriage, birth of a child” and “late marriage, birth of a child” are the most common. More than 60% of respondents from Soviet generations followed these two trajectories. In the case of modern generations, they were surpassed by trajectories where early or late cohabitation precedes marriage, as well as such a trajectory as “cohabitation, birth of a child”. The amount of people choosing the other four trajectories is statistically stable among different generations. Multinomial logistic regression showed that type of settlement, level of education, age of separation from parents and attaining one’s first job, gender, generation and parents’ matrimonial experience are all factors of choosing a family formation trajectory.