The relationship between disability and parental status: a register study of the 1968 to 1970 birth cohorts

BMC Public Health

Lotta Vikström¹  Erling Häggström Lundevaller²  Fredinah Namatovu³ 

[1] Centre for Demographic and Ageing Research (CEDAR), Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;Department of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;Centre for Demographic and Ageing Research (CEDAR), Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;Umeå School of Business, Economics, and Statistics, Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;Department of Epidemiology and Global Health, Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;Centre for Demographic and Ageing Research (CEDAR), Umeå University, SE-901 87, Umeå, Sweden;

关键词: Child;    Children;    Disability;    Disability benefits;    Disability pension;    Early retirement;    Fertility;    Having children;    Parenthood;    Parenting;    Parental status;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12889-021-10371-1

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundHaving children is a major life course event yet some disabilities could make it biologically challenging and some others could limit access to necessary socioeconomic resources. To date, there is relatively little data on disability and parental status and our study aimed to investigate this relationship.MethodsThis longitudinal cohort study was based on register data obtained from all people born in Sweden from 1968 to 1970 (n = 440220). We performed descriptive analyses, graphical plots, logistic regression, and Cox regression analyses.ResultsOur findings from both logistic regression and Cox regression indicated that individuals that started to receive disability benefits at an early age had reduced chances of having children during the follow-up duration. Men with disabilities were less likely to have children when compared to women with disabilities and to men and women without disabilities.ConclusionsWe found evidence that disability during early adulthood was associated with reduced chances of having children. Findings support policies and programmes aimed at promoting optimal health during early adulthood, as this would promote continued labour force participation, reduce early use of disability benefits, and possibly improve chances of becoming a parent.

【 授权许可】

CC BY