On Family Practices

Abstract

Changes in Western families since the early 1960s are well known and much discussed. In this chapter, we return to demographic changes and trends, and examine the demographic statistics of Finland and Spain within the Western European (EU15) context from 1960 to the early 2000s. To start the examination of family practices from 1960 is well justified, for it is the point in time that is considered as the start of the latest and ongoing transition in family practices, patterns of family formation and fertility. We will start with a description of the three-phased model of the so-called second demographic transition and review how demographic developments in Finland and Spain fit into the model. Second, the demographic statistics are viewed in connection with theories of demographic transition. After a more general discussion of elements of and reasons for the demographic transition, the Finnish and Spanish cases are discussed in more detail, assessing the explanatory power of the theories and looking for the case-specific explanations for changes in patterns of family formation.