The Link between Family Formation Dynamics and Migration: The Case of Senegalese Migrants in Europe

Elisabeth K. Kraus, Universitat Pompeu Fabra

This paper examines the relationship between migration experiences and family formation trajectories of Sub-Sahara African migrants in Europe. It builds on two theoretical approaches that link migration with fertility and nuptiality, namely the disruption and the interrelation of events hypotheses. I use longitudinal data from Senegalese migrants in Spain, France and Italy collected in the framework of the survey "Migrations between Africa and Europe" (MAFE-MESE-Senegal). Applying sequence analysis techniques and distinguishing between genders, I compute the distances between different life course sequences in terms of childbearing and union formation during the immediate time before and after migration. Individuals are grouped into clusters according to the dissimilarities in their family formation trajectories. The clusters indicate that for men and women union formation and childbearing are strongly linked with migration processes. Regression analyses reveal that age at migration and educational levels are important predictors for different family formation-migration trajectories.