The development of familys structure in Finland in 1960-1987

The purpose of the article is to study the development of family structure in Finland in 1960—1987. For the first time, the data provide total coverage of all family types. Cohabitation became increasingly common in the 1970s but has so far not been covered by the data of official family statistics. Further, sample data have only included family data on selected age groups. Statistics Finland has now developed a method by which family and cohabitation data may automatically be derived from information about people’s place of residence, demographic characteristics, and relatives. The family statistics data for 1981 and 1987 have been reproduced. The article describes changes in the numbers of families of different types, families with young children and families of different sizes, as well as developments in the regional family structure during the 1960—1987 period. In addition, developments in the prevalence of living in a family and living in a family with young children are studied with reference to the 1981—1987 period.