Motherhood after the age of 35 in Poland

Anna Rybinska, Warsaw School of Economics

Postponing motherhood is a widespread phenomenon across developed countries however only few studies look into late motherhood in post-socialist countries on a micro-scale. In this study, we look at the context of the first childbirth in Poland in the midst of the political transformation of 1989. We drew individual data from the 2011 GGS-PL and the 2011 FAMWELL Survey and using sequence analysis we reconstructed life trajectories of women who experienced the transition to adulthood during the late 1980's and the early 1990's and have just completed their fertility histories. Comparing paths of their lives, we looked for differences in terms of educational, professional and conjugal careers between women who gave birth before the age of 30 and after the age of 35. Our results show how various life careers crisscross over the life course leading women to late motherhood.