The authors examined the patterning of marriage and childbearing for female German young adults by comparing data independently collected in 1991 and 1996. The sample consisted of 20- to 29-year-old women from former East and West Germany. Results suggest that the timing of marriage and childbearing, but not the sequencing and duration between these two transitions, was altered after unification, particularly for Eastern females. Furthermore, personal experience variables predicted the particular sequencing of family transitions, however, only for Western females. The discussion focuses on the role of unification in shaping family transition patterns and considers reasons behind regional differences.
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