The fertility rate in Australia, like almost all OECD countries, is below the level required for population replacement. This paper provides an overview of trends in fertility in Australia and the potential implications of these trends. The fertility rate in Australia, like almost all OECD countries, is below the level required for population replacement. This...

This update from the recently-released Census data highlights the fact that the future marital status patterns of today’s young people may well differ from the current marital status patterns of older people. Partnership formation trends are continuing in the same direction as that which was apparent in recent previous Censuses – with falls evident in...

The report is a benchmark study based on data relating to a period prior to the 2006 reforms to the family law system and will be used to assist in evaluating aspects of the reforms. It provides some challenging findings about the frequency of allegations of violence and abuse and the amount of supporting material...

Ruth Weston, Lixia Qu and David de Vaus examine the factors that discriminate between cohabiting couples who choose to marry, those who choose to separate, and those who continue to cohabit. They use three waves of data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey to explore the characteristics of those who...

The Attitudes to Child Support Study, conducted by the AIFS early in 2005, was designed to inform the work of the Ministerial Taskforce on Child Support. Data were obtained from a general population sample of 1001 people aged between 18 and 64 years and from a national random sample of 620 separated/divorced parents with at...