Diffusion of cohabitation in Poland

Abstract

This paper attempts to establish the stage Poland has reached in the process of cohabitation diffusion, referring to the theoretical model of the process developed in demographic literature. Official statistics suggest that Poland is still in the first stage of cohabitation diffusion; however, our in-depth study of the process of first union formation challenges this view. We investigated cohabitation from a life-course perspective and analysed the meanings which are attached to this form of living arrangement. The results clearly indicate that Poland has already entered the second stage of cohabitation diffusion. We reached this conclusion on the basis of quantitative and qualitative data. This mixed-method approach allowed us to obtain empirical evidence from different sources and hence to formulate our conclusions with higher certainty (methodological triangulation). of the population.