Research summary
The study shows that fertility cannot be understood as an isolated decision. It is shaped by a sequence of life-course transitions: completing education, entering employment, achieving financial and residential independence, forming a partnership and becoming a parent.
IDP therefore introduces a temporal perspective that asks not only when a first child is born, but how much reproductive time is lost before that point is reached.
Time is narrowing
Longer transitions towards stability reduce the effective time window available for family formation.
Countries differ sharply
The comparison of Slovenia and Sweden shows that similar ages at first birth may conceal very different life-course pathways.
Transitions are compressed
In Slovenia, residential independence and first parenthood often occur within a very short period.
The pattern can be measured
RTI and IPG provide a foundation for future cross-country comparisons and more comprehensive family policy analysis.
The study opens a new way of understanding low fertility: not only as a matter of preferences or financial incentives, but also as a question of time, security and the sequencing of life-course transitions.