Interethnic marriage: identifying the second generation in Australia

"Studies in Australia show that an increasing proportion of the population have ancestors from more than one country. Evidence regarding differences in the marriage patterns of first and second generation migrants has been restricted in scope as published marriage registration data includes only birthplace of partners. Marriage registration records include information about the birthplace of parents of partners, but is available only through specially produced tabulations. Changes in the census for 1986 and 1991 make it possible to identify the second generation in households, and this article examines the use of census data as an alternative to marriage registration records in tracing changes in intermarriage patterns and differences between urban and rural areas."

[Families in France and Sweden: the search for new models]

"Examination of the evolution of family models in France and Sweden reveals many similar trends: increase in the divorce rate, fall in marriage and fertility rates, decrease in the size of the average family, increase in the number of single parent families, diversity of rearranged households, etc. However, the authors stress the extent to which the historical and ideological context of this evolution is different in the two countries. Whereas new conjugal models are diffused rapidly in Sweden without provoking reactions of rejection, a certain ideology in France recommends an ideal of conjugal stability and demands a policy openly favouring an increased birth rate. The Swedes find contraception and abortion natural whereas they are still the subject of impassioned debates in France. The attitude to children is very different in the two countries. However, in both cases, although the evolution of family ties still has an experimental aspect it seems sufficiently radical to make it necessary to rethink the nature of social ties in general." (SUMMARY IN ENG)

[French people acquiring citizenship by marriage and their spouses: a diverse and changing situation]

"After a brief presentation on the history of the law concerning acquisition of French nationality by marriage, the authors analyse the new bill passed in 1993. They go on to describe the social characteristics of people who acquire French nationality by marriage and their spouses....The social and cultural characteristics of the spouse explain the recent changes among those who have acquired French nationality by marriage. For instance, the number of couples that consist of a French husband and a foreign wife, as compared to those where the situation is reversed, depends on the nationality of the foreign spouse. The increasing age-gap between spouses can be attributed to their increasing socio-professional level and to changes in the distribution by nationality among the foreign population." (SUMMARY IN ENG AND SPA)

The future of woman's own name and the transformation of family structures

The author explores "the changes in attitude [in France] which may have accompanied the recent anti-marriage trend mirrored by the spread of unmarried cohabitation and divorce. She has chosen to investigate opinions in France concerning a secularly one-sided aspect of the marriage system: almost all women take their husband's name when they marry and children are automatically given only their father's name....We...look for signs of change: first, cohortwise, by examining age-specific differences in attitude; second, change related to social groups and the diffusion of new opinions....Finally, we compare these results with data from preceding surveys and suggest what the prospects may be for woman's name."