Aiming to expand our comprehension of the complex structures and cultures that influence reproductive choice, this book uses empirical studies from six nations - France, Scandinavia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Germany and Italy - to show how different economic, political and cultural contexts interact in young adults' fertility rationa

Anne Lise Ellingsæter is Professor of Sociology at the University of Oslo.

An-Magritt Jensen is Professor of Sociology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Merete Lie is Professor in the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies of Culture at Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

1. The Social Meaning of Children and Fertility Change 2. The Politics of Parenting: The Meaning of Children, the Meaning of Work 3. Economic Risk, Fertility and the Welfare State: Understanding Individual Rationales 4. Flexible Work: Implications for the Social Meaning of Children 5. Patterns of Partnership and Parenthood: Experiences, Approaches and Readiness Towards Commitment and Creating a Family 6. The Cultural Ideal of the Joint Decision: Illuminating Values of Individuality and Relationality of the Child Choice 7. The Non-Modern Child? Ambivalence about Parenthood among Young Adults 8. Rising Fertility, Fewer Fathers: Crossroads of Networks, Gender and Class 9. Changing Fertility Behavior across Two Generations: The Role of Gender and Class 10. From Mothers to Daughters: Intergenerational Transmission of Fertility Norms 11. The Social Meaning of Children Embedded in Institutions and Personal Relations