Volume 52 - Article 28 | Pages 915–938
A parallel kinship universe? A replication of Kolk et al. (2023) with Dutch register data on kinship networks
By Vera de Bel, Eszter Bokányi, Karsten Hank, Thomas Leopold
Abstract
Background: Kolk et al. (2023) use Swedish register data to provide a detailed numerical account of biological kinship. Applying their approach in other countries is challenging due to high data requirements.
Objective: We examine whether Kolk et al.’s (2023) findings generalize to another demographically advanced country, the Netherlands, and assess how differences in cohort fertility and divorce rates influence the prevalence of different kin types.
Methods: We analyze kinship network data for the entire Dutch population in 2018, focusing on ties to grandchildren, children, nieces, nephews, siblings, cousins, parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.
Results: First, we find strong similarities between Dutch and Swedish kinship structures, extending the picture drawn by Kolk et al. (2023) to another demographically advanced Western context. Second, we show how the Dutch baby boom has trickled down across generations, leading to larger numbers of aunts, uncles, and cousins. Third, we show how differences in other family-related behaviors – specifically divorce and separation – shape the composition of kinship networks and cross-national differences, evident in a substantially lower number of half-siblings in the Netherlands than in Sweden.
Contribution: This replication underlines the benefits of empirically validating kinship statistics derived from microsimulations and aggregate demographic data.
Author’s Affiliation
- Vera de Bel - Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, the Netherlands EMAIL
- Eszter Bokányi - Universiteit van Amsterdam, the Netherlands EMAIL
- Karsten Hank - Universität zu Köln, Germany EMAIL
- Thomas Leopold - Universität zu Köln, Germany EMAIL
Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research
KINMATRIX: A new data resource for studies of families and kinship
Volume 51 - Article 25
Same-sex relationship experiences and expectations regarding partnership and parenthood
Volume 39 - Article 25
Who becomes a grandparent – and when? Educational differences in the chances and timing of grandparenthood
Volume 37 - Article 29
Understanding parental gender preferences in advanced societies: Lessons from Sweden and Finland
Volume 17 - Article 6
The geographic context of male nuptiality in western Germany during the 1980s and 1990s
Volume 7 - Article 15
Changes in Swedish Women’s Individual Activity Status and the Subsequent Risk of Giving Birth in the 1980s and 1990s: An Extension of Studies by Gunnar Andersson and Britta Hoem
Volume 4 - Article 4
Gender Preferences for Children in Europe: Empirical Results from 17 FFS Countries
Volume 2 - Article 1
Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research
Examining the relationships between education, coresidential unions, and the fertility gap by simulating the reproductive life courses of Dutch women
Volume 52 - Article 24
| Keywords:
contraception,
education,
fertility,
GGS,
life course,
LISS,
microsimulation,
Netherlands,
physiology,
unions
Studying individuals in same-sex couples using longitudinal administrative data from Canadian tax records: Opportunities and challenges
Volume 52 - Article 2
| Keywords:
administrative data,
Canada,
Longitudinal Administrative Databank,
same-sex couples,
sexual orientation,
sexual orientation earnings gap,
tax data
Higher incomes are increasingly associated with higher fertility: Evidence from the Netherlands, 2008–2022
Volume 51 - Article 26
| Keywords:
fertility,
income,
inequalities,
Netherlands,
parenthood
The pitfalls and benefits of using administrative data for internal migration research: An evaluation of Australia’s Person Level Integrated Data Asset (PLIDA)
Volume 51 - Article 22
| Keywords:
administrative data,
Australia,
internal migration
Describing the Dutch Social Networks and Fertility Study and how to process it
Volume 49 - Article 19
| Keywords:
fertility,
Netherlands,
personal networks,
social influence
Cited References: 17
Download to Citation Manager
PubMed
Google Scholar