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Using Swedish register data, this article examines the association between having experienced the birth of a younger half-sibling and two educational outcome measures among Swedish 9th graders from 1998 to 2007. The data set, with the full population of 9th graders (N = 874,812), enables us to differentiate between adolescents with maternal as well as paternal half-siblings. The results show that adolescents in postseparation families with half-siblings have lower overall grades and are less likely to be eligible for school continuation after 9th grade than those without half-siblings. The results point to interesting gender patterns both by the sex of the child and whether the half-sibling is maternal or paternal.

"In diesem Beitrag werden die Daten des schwedischen Level of Living Survey verwendet, um die Erfahrungen von Kindern mit der Familienrekonstitution, genauer: mit der ersten Formierung einer Stieffamilie, in Schweden zwischen den Jahren 1970 und 2000 zu untersuchen. Zu Beginn wird das Risiko analysiert, einen Stiefelternteil zu bekommen und zwar für Jungen und Mädchen unterschiedlichen Alters und sozioökonomischen Hintergrunds, wobei letzterer anhand des Bildungsniveaus der Eltern gemessen wird. Die Ergebnisse zeigen hinsichtlich des Bildungsniveaus keine Unterschiede im Prozess der Gründung von Stieffamilien auf. Es bestehen jedoch eindeutige Unterschiede zwischen den Geschlechtern, da die Neigung, einen Stiefelternteil zu bekommen, je nach Geschlecht des Kindes variiert. Andere Faktoren, die ebenfalls Einfluss auf die Eintrittsrate in eine Stieffamilie haben, sind: die Zeitdauer, die ein Kind mit einem alleinerziehenden Elternteil gelebt hat als auch das Alter des Kindes in Wechselwirkung mit dessen Geschlecht. Obwohl die Bildung keinen Einfluss auf die Rate des Eintritts in eine Stieffamilie hat, muss man beachtet, dass es ein soziales Gefälle bei den Prozessen gibt, die dazu führen, dass Kinder sich im Risikopool derjenigen befinden, die überhaupt in eine Stieffamilie eintreten können. Insbesondere Kinder höher gebildeter Eltern haben ein signifikant geringeres Risiko außerhalb einer Partnerschaft geboren zu werden oder die Trennung oder Scheidung der Eltern zu erleben und sind somit seltener im Risikopool der jenigen zu finden, die in eine Stieffamilie eintreten können." (Autorenreferat), "In this article, I use the Swedish Level of Living Survey data to study children's experience of family reconstitution, or the first formation of stepfamily in Sweden 1970 to 2000. I set out to analyze relative risks for acquiring a stepparent for boys and girls of different ages and socioeconomic backgrounds, here measured as parent's educational attainment. The results show no educational differences in the stepfamily formation process. There are however clear gender differences in the family reconstitution process where the likelihood of gaining a stepparent varies by the child's gender. Other factors that have effect on the child's likelihood of entering the first stepfamily are the time lived with a single parent as well as the child's age in interaction with the child's sex. Although there are no educational differentials in stepfamily formation, one needs to account for the social gradient in the processes leading to children being in the risk pool. Particularly children of higher educated parents have a significantly lower risk of being born out of union or experiencing a parental union dissolution and thus being exposed to the risk of entering a stepfamily." (author's abstract)

This article focuses on gender differences in emotional well-beingof adolescents in five different family settings. It analyzestwo main mediators—economic deprivation and parental socialization—and is based on unusually rich survey data combiningparental and child reports as well as information from administrativeregisters. The results show lower well-being of childrenin single-mother families and stepfamilies. These associations aremainly mediated through parental socialization rather than economicdeprivation, except for girls in their early to midteens livingwith a single mother. Different patterns of lower well-being levelsfor boys and girls in different family settings are found.

SPaDE Linnaeus Center

Using data from Swedish population registers (n: 874,812) this paper examines the association between sibling structure and educational outcomes among Swedish 9th graders 1998 to 2007. The large dataset, with the full student population, enables us to differentiate between adolescents with older and younger maternal as well as paternal half-siblings. The results show that adolescents in post-separation families with half-siblings have lower overall grades and are less likely to be eligible for school continuation after 9th grade than those without half-siblings. The results point to interesting gender patterns both by the sex of the child as well as whether the half-sibling is maternal or paternal.