Social support matters for fertility intentions in Finland

Individuals make childbearing decisions considering the costs and benefits of parenthood. Raising children requires lots of resources, and support from others is crucial. In double-breadwinner countries like Finland, informal support from one’s social network members makes it easier for parents, for example, to balance work and family. Support received from one’s social network, whether in the form of practical help or emotional encouragement, can be an important final nudge towards thinking that now is the right time to have (more) children. Previous studies have shown that having more support is indeed linked to wanting to have children.

According to research, grandparents are the social network members who help in childrearing the most. Therefore, support from them is also potentially very important for childbearing intentions. Receiving support from other family members and friends might also be related to childbearing intentions, but the differences between various sources of support have been little studied. Further, the effects of receiving support from different network members might be interrelated. According to social support literature, individuals often have preferences in the sources of support. Grandparents usually represent the first choice. If they are unavailable or unable to meet the needs of the care recipient, individuals turn to other sources: usually other relatives, non-kin, and formal services. This means that support from others can compensate for the lack of grandparental support.

In two recent studies, we looked at how the support people receive from their own parents (i.e., potential or current grandparents) and others in their social network relates to their plans to have children. We also wanted to see if support from others becomes more important when support from parents is not available. We used data from the Generations and Gender Survey combined with information from Finnish registers, focusing on people aged 18 to 45.

Do young Finnish adults count on parents and others when planning to have a child?

We examined both emotional support, meaning having someone to rely on, and practical support, meaning financial and concrete help. Based on previous research, we expected all kinds of help from all network members to be associated with plans to have children. However, we found that how support was associated with childbearing plans varied by the type of support and recipient’s sex, age, and partnership status. Firstly, overall, only financial support from own parents and other relatives was associated with a higher likelihood of planning to have children for everyone.

Secondly, emotional support from parents was not related to childbearing plans and emotional support from other network members than parents was associated with a higher likelihood of childbearing plans for two distinct groups only. All women aged 36 to 40 were more likely to plan childbearing if they had emotional support from other network members than parents (Fig. 1).

In addition, this emotional support increased the likelihood of childbearing plans among men and women aged 26 to 30 who did not have a partner (Fig. 2). This suggests that for those who want children but are not in a relationship, support from their social network is important.

Thirdly, when looking at practical support from other network members than parents, it mattered for two groups. It was related to a higher likelihood of having childbearing plans among men and women aged 18 to 25 who had a partner (Fig. 3).

And interestingly, it was linked to a lower likelihood of having childbearing intentions among all men aged 41 to 45. Having childbearing plans at this age was rare overall, and having practical support dropped the likelihood of planning children to practically zero. This might mean that these men are going through tough times and need practical support, which is not ideal for having children (Fig. 4).

Does support from other network members compensate for the lack of grandparental help?

Finally, we examined the interplay between different sources of support. We compared the likelihood of childbearing plans between people whose parents were still alive and those whose parents had passed away to see if support from other network members could compensate for the lack of potential grandparent’s help. We found that among individuals who did not have both biological parents alive or known, those who received emotional support from others were more likely to plan having a child within three years than those who did not receive it. Interestingly, receiving this emotional support from others made these individuals who lacked a parent as likely to have childbearing plans as those who had both parents alive. This result means that others can partly compensate for the lack of potential grandparent’s help.

Support in the context of Finland

Only financial support from parents and other relatives was consistently associated with childbearing plans. Emotional and other practical support had some effects for specific groups only. These results were somewhat surprising in the Finnish context, where the volume of cash transfers and services available to families with children is substantial. That financial support from relatives still plays a role in people’s decisions about having children, is interesting. This could be because raising children is getting more expensive. However, we think that support from the network members mostly helps potential parents feel more confident about being able to provide for their children. In countries with less extensive public services, the role of this support might be bigger than in Finland.

More information

Alyona Artamonova, researcher

Venla Berg, leading researcher

The text is based on articles:

Artamonova, A., Sorsa, T., Berg, V., Hägglund, A. E., & Rotkirch, A. (2024). Social Resources are Associated with Higher Fertility Intentions in Contemporary Finland. Comparative Population Studies, 49: 81-116.

Artamonova, A., Sorsa, T., Berg, V., Hägglund, A. E., & Rotkirch, A. (2023–2024). Counting on parents or others? The role of social support for fertility intentions in Finland. Finnish Yearbook of Population Research, 57: 165–190.

How to cite

Artamonova, A. & Berg, V. (2024). Social support matters for fertility intentions in Finland. Science leak article 5/2024. Helsinki: Väestöliitto, Population Research Institute. Available: https://www.vaestoliitto.fi/en/articles/social-support-matters-for-fertility-intentions-in-finland/ [Cited: ##.##.20##].