The trifecta of adulthood: Housing, partnering and childbearing trajectories

Abstract

Substantial changes in residential transitions and family formation patterns have been observed in Western societies, but less attention has been paid to the de-standardisation of adulthood pathways in East Asian contexts, where unique social, economic and cultural circumstances may produce diverse trajectories that are less explored in existing theoretical and empirical frameworks. Adopting a life course perspective, this study identifies the multi-trajectories of housing, partnering and childbearing across adulthood in Taiwan, a setting marked by high housing costs and low fertility rates. Data from the Taiwanese Panel Study of Family Dynamics 2000–2020 (N = 6,931) were used for group-based trajectory modelling, and mixed-effects multinomial regression was employed to examine the likelihood of group membership given early-life resources and social origin. Six common housing–partnering–childbearing trajectories were identified. The most prevalent living arrangement was living in parental homes (50.7%), followed by rental homes (25%), self-owned homes (15.5%) and dorms or other (8.8%). Union formation generally precedes childbearing, whereas housing transitions may occur at various time points. Young adults’ home-leaving and homeownership access appear to be closely related to their parental backgrounds, such as their parents’ educational attainment and occupational status. Overall, the findings are consistent with the de-standardisation of pathways to adulthood, demonstrating the diversity in adult trajectories and the lack of a single dominant pattern.