Men's life course trajectories: Exploring the differences by cohort and social class

Abstract Making use of retrospective information gathered through a 2001 national survey in Canada, we examined the timing of transitions and life course trajectories starting from events experienced early in life to events that usually happen later in life. The subjects of the study were men born from 1926 to 1975, and the analyses were done by 5‐year birth cohorts and by social status. Results of the analysis showed that there have been significant changes over cohorts and that the life course trajectories of the poor were different from those economically better off. Men from higher social class were more likely to experience family life events ‐ such as start of regular work and entry into union ‐ at older ages, and were also more likely to follow a normative life course trajectory. We explore the factors affecting such differences in the context of constraints on decision‐making.