Regional Variations in Multiple-Partner Fertility in Canada

Abstract

Using retrospective biographical data from the 2011 GSS, we examine regional variations in multiple-partner fertility in Canada. We document its prevalence across regions from both a cross-sectional and a longitudinal perspective. Furthermore, we analyse regional disparities in the family trajectories that lead to multiple-partner fertility (MPF), focusing on the conditions surrounding the first birth. While we find no significant differences across regions in the occurrence of multiple-partner fertility among fathers, our analysis shows striking variations in the prevalence and timing of MPF among mothers. Women living in the Atlantic provinces, in the Prairies and, to a lesser degree, in British Columbia experience a higher rate of multiple-partner fertility than those living in Ontario and Quebec. Regional differences in the divergent pathways leading to MPF partly contribute to explaining the observed variation across the country. Giving birth at young ages and in non-residential partnerships is associated with a higher likelihood of multiple-partner fertility, while repartnering after the break-up of the union in which the first child is born is more common in provinces where it is less prevalent.