Call for papers

INED, the French National Institute for Demographic Studies, hosts the twelfth Meeting of the European Network for the Sociological and Demographic Study of Divorce . The conference will be held in Paris, France on 2-4 October 2014.

The rate of divorce and separations has risen across developed countries, however, the rate of increase has not been uniform. In some countries, divorce rates have recently stabilized, whereas in other countries it is still increasing. Patterns of divorce and union dissolution might also differ. In some countries, union dissolution is strongly connected to social inequalities whereas in other countries, union separation is more evenly distributed in the population. The aim of this network and its next conference is to better understand “the relationships of divorce with economic and socio-cultural inequality and with the different social security and family policies within Europe" (Dronkers).

The conference will take a broad approach to union dissolution, considering both divorce and separation for non-married partnerships. We particularly welcome papers on the antecedents of union dissolution with a particular attention to the changing determinants overtime. Furthermore, we invite papers on different aspects of the consequences of separation and divorce. Separation and divorce concerns different protagonists: women, men and children, in different aspects of their life. For adults, we are interested in their emotional well-being, housing and economic situation (occupation, income, unemployment and dependency on social welfare), and family situations (repartnering chances). For children, consequences of interest could include their well-being and educational attainment.

Moreover, papers dealing with spousal and child maintenance or support (for example, the legal framework, enforcement and penalty provisions in the event of non-compliance, consequences on living standards) will be welcome. Both empirical and theoretical papers will be considered.

Keynote speakers:

Paul Amato (Professor of Family Sociology and Demography, Penn State University)

Please submit an extended abstract of 1-2 pages, or a full paper (that includes a shorter abstract) to divorceconference2014@ined.fr by 3rd May, 2014.

Author notifications will be sent by mid-June. Oral and poster presentations will be available.

The conference will be free of charge. Limited travel grants might be available for presenting authors. To apply for a travel grant, please include a one page letter to motivate your need for financial help on a separate file when you submit your abstract.

The selection committee
Carole Bonnet, Cécile Bourreau-Dubois, Jaap Dronkers, Bruno Jeandidier, Christiaan Monden, Dimitri Mortelmans, Lidia Panico Anne Solaz and Laurent Toulemon

The organizing committee
Carole Bonnet, Lidia Panico Anne Solaz and Laurent Toulemon