The delay of maternity and its causes: an analysis of the timing of first birth in Spain

This study explores factors related to the delay in the timing of fertility and the sharp decline in total fertility in Spain since 1970.. The focus is on comparing elderly female cohorts born between 1941-55 with younger females born after 1970. Data come from the very recent and as yet unanalyzed fertility survey, "Fecundidad, familia y valores 2006" conducted in Spain on a sample of 9700 women. It is a survey of women aged 15 and over who reside in Spain and investigates, among other things, their occupational history, their pregnancies and relationships, as well as many exceedingly useful questions for our study, such as those about education levels, and opinions and values. We model the transition to the first birth using life history analysis techniques, and test, in particular, the role played by changing strategies of union formation and by participation in the labour market. The role played by female involvement in the labour market is important and complex and changes across cohorts. Our results suggest that being employed is not necessarily a deterrant to starting a union and conceiving a child, but the search for stable employment and lack of flexibility into the labour market delay the timing of family formation.