New study highlights divorce is boosting gender equality in Sweden

Single mothers represent one of the most vulnerable demographics globally. In Sweden, the number of women in this role has nearly halved over the past two decades. What has driven this change? Are we witnessing a significant shift in the global trend of rising separations and divorces?

No, union dissolutions in Sweden remain among the highest globally. However, there has been a transformation in how break-ups are managed. Sweden not only leads in divorce rates but also in splitting child custody equally, with nearly half of children from separated parents now dividing their time equally between both households.

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In our recent study published in the journal Social Forces, we aimed to explore how this shift in living arrangements has impacted the gender division of caregiving responsibilities within former couples. We hypothesized that such changes could potentially promote greater gender equality compared to scenarios where children primarily resided with their mothers.

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Splitting childcare equally necessitates fathers taking on full caregiving responsibilities for half the time¡ªsomething that few partnered fathers typically do. This arrangement could encourage parents to adopt a more egalitarian approach to caregiving.

To assess this, we analyzed data from Sweden's comprehensive administrative registers, tracking parental leave taken by both mothers and fathers before and after divorce.