Volume 43 - Article 48 | Pages 1413–1428  

The spatial diffusion of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium over 25 years: Geographic proximity and urban hierarchy

By Yoann Doignon, Thierry Eggerickx, Ester Rizzi

Abstract

Background: Previous studies have shown that nonmarital cohabitation is socially diffused. However, to our knowledge, no studies exist on spatial aspects of the diffusion. This article examines the spatial diffusion process of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium.

Objective: This study aims to answer the following questions: What is the spatial diffusion pattern of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium? In which areas did nonmarital cohabitation increase first, and which areas are resistant to this demographic change? How has this diffusion taken place geographically?

Methods: We use data from the Belgian National Register, which makes it possible to achieve analysis at a detailed geographical level (the municipality) and covering a long period of time (1991–2015). We use diachronic cartography to reveal the spatial patterns of diffusion of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium.

Results: We observed that spatial diffusion of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium is similar to the spread pattern of fertility decline in the first demographic transition. This observed spatial pattern suggests to some degree that this process may have occurred by geographic proximity and through the urban hierarchy.

Contribution: The article highlights the importance of investigating nonmarital cohabitation from a spatial and temporal perspective. It describes the spatial pattern of the spread of nonmarital cohabitation in Belgium. To our knowledge, this has never been done before in the existing literature on nonmarital cohabitation. The results highlight a possible diffusion through the urban hierarchy, even if the influence of contextual conditions on diffusion within municipalities cannot be excluded. Our results, although descriptive, could have important implications for future statistical modelling of the diffusion process.

Author's Affiliation

Other articles by the same author/authors in Demographic Research

A world apart: Levels and determinants of excess mortality due to COVID-19 in care homes: The case of the Belgian region of Wallonia during the spring 2020 wave
Volume 45 - Article 33

Childlessness, sex composition of children, and divorce risks in China
Volume 41 - Article 26

Entry into first marriage in China
Volume 37 - Article 36

Does it take a village to raise a child?: The buffering effect of relationships with relatives for parental life satisfaction
Volume 34 - Article 34

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

Multiple (il)legal pathways: The diversity of immigrants' legal trajectories in Belgium
Volume 47 - Article 10    | Keywords: Belgium, immigration, integration, legal status, population register, sequence analysis, trajectories

A world apart: Levels and determinants of excess mortality due to COVID-19 in care homes: The case of the Belgian region of Wallonia during the spring 2020 wave
Volume 45 - Article 33    | Keywords: age, Belgium, COVID-19, gender, mortality, nursing home

Who moves out and who keeps the home? Short-term and medium-term mobility consequences of grey divorce in Belgium
Volume 45 - Article 9    | Keywords: Belgium, divorce, housing, residential mobility, separation

The geographical patterns of birth seasonality in Australia
Volume 43 - Article 40    | Keywords: Australia, births, climate, fertility, regions, seasonality, spatial demography

Trends in living arrangements and their impact on the mortality of older adults: Belgium 1991‒2012
Volume 43 - Article 15    | Keywords: Belgium, living arrangements, long-term trends, mortality, older adults, population register, second demographic transition