Moving around separation: who moves and at what distance

1
Moving around separation who moves and at what
distance

• Clara H. Mulder and Gunnar MalmbergUniversity of
  Amsterdam Umeå University

2
Research aim

• Add to the explanation of moving around
  separation and divorce. Issue who moves, how far
  from the joint home
• Previous research on who moves Not that much.
  Some studies for Germany, Denmark, U.K. previous
  paper by Mulder Wagner (Journal of Marriage and
  Family, 2010. Presented in Antwerp last year)
• Previous research on moving distance Feijten
  Van Ham, 2007, all divorced people (not
  specifically moves at the occasion of the
  separation)

3
Theory who moves

• See Mulder Wagner (2010)
• If costs of moving C(MO) are lower than costs of
  staying C(S) for any separated person, this
  person moves
• If C(MO) gt C(S) for both ex-partners partner
  with lower C(MO) moves (rule of fairness)
• If any ex-partner has insufficient resources to
  pay for joint home alone, this ex-partner moves
• So probability of moving is decreased by higher
  C(MO) and by resources and increased by idem of
  other ex-partner

4
Theory what distance

• Distance decreased by local ties (note these
  ties may also be seen as a cost of moving and
  decrease its likelihood)
• Distance increased by (the likelihood of)
  additional reasons for moving

5
Hypotheses local ties

• Hypotheses for individual - on moving and
  distance. Partner on moving
• Children (particularly young or school
  age)gender difference expected
• Parents, siblings close (lt 2 km)
• Working from home
• Living in county of birth

6
Hypotheses resources

• Hypothesis for individual - on moving. Partner
  on moving (relative resources).
• Income
• Level of education
• Age (assets, career advantage)
• Note these variables also indicate reasons for
  moving

7
Hypotheses additional reasons

• Hypothesis on distance, - on moving. No
  hypotheses for partner on distance (except)
• Dispersal of jobs level of education
• Income, idem, BUT greater satisfaction with job
  given level of education
• Unemployment
• Enrolment in education
• Fewer reasons with increasing age
• New partner (and partner has new partner)
• Fewer reasons in urban areas, large cities
• Homeowner better housing but higher cost.
  Housing more dispersed

8
Additional reasons / controls

• Migrant statusDifferences in social
  networksMoving back to home country not observed
• WomenMore likely to initiate separationMore
  likely child custodyPossibly lower investments
  when working from homeLess favorable position
  when homeowner probably less frequently single
  owner

9
Data

• ASTRID data register data for Sweden (entire
  population)
• Couples in 2004 living in the same 100m square
  (married cohabiters with children), separated
  and no longer living in the same 100m square in
  2005
• N 32,867, n moved 20427
• Random designation of one person in couple as the
  separated person, the other as the partner

10
Methods

• Logistic regression of whether separated person
  moved around separation
• OLS regression of log-distance moved for movers
• p lt 0.001, p lt 0.01, p lt 0.05

11
Results children

12
Results family, county of birth

13
Results workplace

14
Results income, education, age

15
Results more reasons for moving

16
Results urbanization, homeowner

17
Conclusions (1)

• Ties to a location decrease likelihood of moving
  and distance moved
• Some evidence of importance of (relative)
  resources to allow staying (income, age)
• Additional reasons working far away, new
  partner, urbanization, homeowner
• But not education, income

18
Conclusions (2)

• Gender differences, even in Sweden
• Moving for separation is special- importance of
  partner variables- no impact of level of
  education- strikingly great impact of local ties