New sociological forecasts show that even single mothers in Germany are reluctant to move in with their new partners
That is why, as Deutsche Welle notes, many were eagerly awaiting the new calculations from the Federal Statistical Office of Germany. One of the main conclusions of sociologists: in 2035, the country will have more than 43 million households. Two years ago, there were about 40 million. One reason is the country's population growth, another is a clear trend toward the "shrinking" of households. That is, more and more Germans will live either alone or as a couple. Such a life will presumably be preferred by 50 million residents of the country. And only half of them are elderly pensioners.
A "household" is a term used in statistics and marketing; it refers to residents of one apartment who share a household. Often a "household" is equated with a family, but this is not entirely correct. Family members are related by blood, but in the West, particularly in Germany, most children, as soon as they reach 17-18 years old, begin to live separately, i.e., run their own household. This is customary, and material opportunities usually allow it.
On the other hand, in the countries of the former USSR, there are still communal apartments where people live together out of necessity, not because they are bound by family ties. However, communal apartments are also in demand in Germany – but voluntarily and mainly among students.
By the way, the standard, so-called nuclear family in the former Soviet Union is considered to be a family of three: mother, father, child, while in Germany it is four: mother, father, two children. In particular, average incomes are calculated based on this "nuclear" unit. Today in Germany, this is 3,297 euros "net." This figure has been growing year by year: over the past ten years, it has increased by 720 euros.
But there are, of course, non-standard families. More than two and a half million households consist of only a father or mother and children. Almost 87 percent of them, as one might expect, are a mother with a child. But interestingly, many single mothers have male partners, yet even when they are effectively in a civil marriage, women are in no hurry to move in with them. It would seem a paradox: why live separately, pay for two apartments, buy furniture for two apartments, and so on, instead of moving in together?
It is difficult to give a clear answer here. Public opinion polls yield different, sometimes contradictory results. Well, first, it must be considered that both men and women usually have enough money to live separately. That is, the material aspect does not have as much importance as it might seem. Second, social status, which is so significant for women in many countries (like, she is married, so she is a serious woman), plays virtually no role in Germany, regardless of whether the woman has a child or not. As for the reasons why both men and women are not too keen on choosing the "cohabitation" option, sociological studies show that they are not the same for both.
Men are most afraid of losing their freedom. They do not want to tie themselves down, do not want to accept the compromises inevitable in everyday life. One German sociologist put it with understandable irony: "Men can give up many things, but not sitting in their underwear in the evening, with a cigarette and a bottle of beer, in front of the TV or computer."
Women, on the other hand, fear something else – that they will have much more housework. And if we are talking about single mothers, they think first and foremost about the child: will he or she get along with her new partner? However, of course, emancipated German women also reluctantly think about the possible loss of personal freedom.
That is why in Germany there are fewer and fewer large households, and fewer large four-, five-, and six-room apartments are being built. Instead, more and more one- and two-room apartments are being built. In Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig, households consisting of one or two people already make up the majority. The trend is also reinforced by the demographic composition of such large university cities: they have a lot of young people who, as we repeat, prefer to live separately. This is good for them, for their parents, and for the country's economy.