Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France

Differences in family values between Muslims and non-Muslims have been widely debated in Europe, but gender differences within Muslims remain less explored. Using survey data from immigrants and children of immigrants in France, this study investigated the gender differences in ideal family size amo...

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Main Author: Ka U Ng
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publishing 2025-07-01
Series:Socius
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1177/23780231251351671
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author Ka U Ng
author_facet Ka U Ng
author_sort Ka U Ng
collection DOAJ
description Differences in family values between Muslims and non-Muslims have been widely debated in Europe, but gender differences within Muslims remain less explored. Using survey data from immigrants and children of immigrants in France, this study investigated the gender differences in ideal family size among Muslims and non-Muslims. Poisson regression models show that male Muslim children of immigrants tend to prefer larger families, like their foreign-born parents, and that their female counterparts, like non-Muslim men and women, prefer smaller families. Decomposition analysis shows that differences in education and friendship networks explain only a small part of this gender gap. Notably, religiosity does not explain the gap. Instead, the stronger influence of in-group friendship networks and residential segregation on men’s fertility ideals accounts for most of the observed difference. These findings contribute a gender perspective to acculturation research on family values.
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spelling doaj-art-c361a2bc27d04f75b2034938ffebc68f2025-08-20T03:13:29ZengSAGE PublishingSocius2378-02312025-07-011110.1177/23780231251351671Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in FranceKa U Ng0Stetson University, DeLand, FL, USADifferences in family values between Muslims and non-Muslims have been widely debated in Europe, but gender differences within Muslims remain less explored. Using survey data from immigrants and children of immigrants in France, this study investigated the gender differences in ideal family size among Muslims and non-Muslims. Poisson regression models show that male Muslim children of immigrants tend to prefer larger families, like their foreign-born parents, and that their female counterparts, like non-Muslim men and women, prefer smaller families. Decomposition analysis shows that differences in education and friendship networks explain only a small part of this gender gap. Notably, religiosity does not explain the gap. Instead, the stronger influence of in-group friendship networks and residential segregation on men’s fertility ideals accounts for most of the observed difference. These findings contribute a gender perspective to acculturation research on family values.https://doi.org/10.1177/23780231251351671
spellingShingle Ka U Ng
Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
Socius
title Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
title_full Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
title_fullStr Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
title_full_unstemmed Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
title_short Gender Differences in Fertility Ideals among Muslim and Non-Muslim Immigrants and Their Children in France
title_sort gender differences in fertility ideals among muslim and non muslim immigrants and their children in france
url https://doi.org/10.1177/23780231251351671
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