How are long-term family life courses associated with mid-life earnings for men and women? Based on Finnish register data on earnings and family life courses from ages 18–39 (N=12,951) we identify seven typical family life courses, and link them to mid-life earnings with sequence and cluster analysis and regression methods. In addition to previous research on earnings gaps by parenthood or marriage, our findings support a negative earnings gradient from more to less ‘traditional’ normative family life courses for both men and women. In the egalitarian welfare state of Finland, the most ‘traditional’ family life courses of stable marriage with two or more children go along with the highest earnings. Mid-life earnings are progressively lower following family lives that deviate from this normative model with partnered or unpartnered childlessness or cohabiting parenthood. We find the lowest earnings for unpartnered mothers and never-partnered childless men. Findings draw attention to a large group of never-partnered childless men with low earnings who often go unnoticed in previous research. Their earnings disadvantage is not associated with family instability but on the contrary with the combined absence of any family events.

中文翻译：

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家庭生活课程、性别和中年收入

长期家庭生活课程与男性和女性的中年收入有何关联？根据芬兰 18-39 岁收入和家庭生活课程的登记数据 (N=12,951)，我们确定了七个典型的家庭生活课程，并使用序列和聚类分析以及回归方法将它们与中年收入联系起来。除了之前关于父母身份或婚姻收入差距的研究之外，我们的研究结果还支持男性和女性从更多到更少“传统”规范家庭生活课程的负收入梯度。在芬兰这个平等的福利国家，最“传统”的稳定婚姻的家庭生活过程伴随着两个或更多孩子的收入最高。随着家庭生活偏离这种规范模式，有伴侣或未伴侣的无子女或同居父母，中年收入逐渐降低。我们发现没有伴侣的母亲和从未有过伴侣的无子女男性的收入最低。调查结果引起了人们对一大群从未有过伴侣的低收入无子女男性的关注，这些男性在之前的研究中经常被忽视。他们的收入劣势与家庭不稳定无关，相反与没有任何家庭事件有关。