Volume 18 - Article 12 | Pages 337–376  

The transition to early fatherhood: National estimates based on multiple surveys

By Kathryn Hynes, Kara Joyner, H. Elizabeth Peters, Felicia DeLeone

Abstract

This study provides systematic information about the prevalence of early male fertility and the relationship between family background characteristics and early parenthood across three widely used data sources: the 1979 and 1997 National Longitudinal Surveys of Youth and the 2002 National Survey of Family Growth. We provide descriptive statistics on early fertility by age, sex, race, cohort, and data set. Because each data set includes birth cohorts with varying early fertility rates, prevalence estimates for early male fertility are relatively similar across data sets. Associations between background characteristics and early fertility in regression models are less consistent across data sets. We discuss the implications of these findings for scholars doing research on early male fertility.

Author’s Affiliation

• Kathryn Hynes - Pennsylvania State University, United States of America EMAIL
• Kara Joyner - Bowling Green State University, United States of America EMAIL
• H. Elizabeth Peters - Cornell University, United States of America EMAIL
• Felicia DeLeone - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States of America EMAIL

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