1. Ron Lesthaeghe, Albert Esteve, Antonio Lopez-Gay.
The ethics revolution and the Latin American cohabitation boom,
Ron Lesthaeghe, Albert Esteve, Antonio Lopez-Gay.
Centre d’Estudis Demografics , Univ. Autonoma Barcelona

2. “Not us, we’re different”
GENERAL CONTEXT
“Not us, we’re different”
Spread of unmarried cohabitation from Northern to Western Europe, to North America and Australia-New Zealand, then to Southern and Eastern Europe. Now also in Japan and Taïwan (S. Korea, PR China ?)
How about Latin America, given diversity with respect to regional pre-existing cohabitation traditions ?
Is this a reaction to the economic and financial crises of the s or is there much more ?

3. Pre-existing traditions => High degree of diversity.
Most native populations : polygamy, polyandry, women & wife exchange, “bride price/ service”, marriage a gradual process, no elaborate rites. But marriage celebrations in populations stemming from large precolumbian states (Mexico, Andean ridge).
Black populations : gender separation, visiting unions and high cohabitation rates.
European white settlers & even clergy : concubines
Less social control & influence Christianity in frontier & remote areas.
Weaker states and/or tolerant legislation ( esp. Portuguese).
BUT ! factors => European marriage
Late 19th & 20th Century European immigration (Italian, Spanish, German). Marriages dominant in Southern Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile
Urban bourgeoisie, educated strata
The model of success, the reference point.
Evangelical christianity

7. Inflation rates. 30 % peak in Chile, Colombia. 130 Mexico
Brazil, Argentina.
% peak
in Peru, Bolivia.
1985
1990
1990
1985

8. INFLATION
PEAKS

10. CHILE ARGENTINA BRAZIL URUGUAY
PERCENTAGES WOMEN C0HABITING AMONG PARTNERED WOMEN, BY EDUCATION AND CENSUS DATE

11. COLOMBIA
ECUADOR
PERU
VENEZUELA

12. PANAMA
MEXICO
Dominican Republic .
Costa Rica

13. EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Women 25-29
Figure 4. Boxplot of the regional diversity of the percent of women with primary education or more, by country and for the two census rounds of 1970 and 2000.
EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Women 25-29
Figure 5. Boxplot of the regional diversity of the percentage of women aged with secondary education or more by country and for the census rounds of 1970 and 2000.

14. “Ready, Willing, and Able”
Moral / ethical acceptability
Economic/material
Advantage;
Response to crisis
(expected: marriages postponed and post-crisis
marriage boom)
Legal framework,
Legal adaptations
THE ETHICS
REVOLUTION
Individual freedom of choice with respect to divorce, euthanasia, sexual orientation, abortion, even suicide. TOP DOWN DIFFUSION

15. Strength of the stigmatization of divorce, 1990-2008
Data source: World Values Studies

16. De-stigmatization of homosexuality

17. Strength of the stigmatization of suicide by education and period

18. Strength of the stigmatization of abortion, 1990-2008

19. Strength of the stigmatization of euthanasia, 1990-2007

20. Strength of the sigmatization of homosexuality by education and period
Data source: World Values Surveys

21. Conclusions
1. Rising cohabitation trend already under way prior to the economic crisis of 1980s, no clear postponement of marriages as a result of crisis, and no post-crisis marriage boom.
2. Uninterrupted rising trend of cohabitation in ALL countries & areas and in ALL social strata, with catching up among the higher education populations. Strong de-stigmatization of premarital cohabitation. Trend still continuing.
3. Concomitant de-stigmatization of divorce, abortion, homosexuality, euthanasia and even suicide.
4. Latin American cohabitation boom is a demographic manifestation of the much wider ethics revolution and cultural change.
5. To be expected: Countries that do not start the ethics revolution will lag behind with respect to the “non-conformist” indicators of the SDT (e.g. cohabitation, non-marital fertility, LAT relationships ), but not necessarily with respect to the sub-replacement fertility aspect or the postponement aspect.

22. The cohabitation boom among the young elites of national administrative units, 1970s to 2000
50%
10%
Rise in percentages cohabiting among all women in a union with
Secondary education or more, 1970s to 2000 (Peru: )