5th ISA Forum of Sociology (6-11 July 2025)

This session brings large families back on the sociological research agenda. With the aggregate decline of fertility, large families have received less attention in sociological research in general and family research in particular. Yet, families with 3 or more children remain a relevant feature of modern families and even more so from a child perspective. Our estimates suggest that one-quarter to one-third of children are growing up with two or more siblings in advanced economies (e.g. US, Germany, UK, Ireland). To underscore the continued relevance of large families in contemporary societies we focus our session on two main questions:

First, who are these modern large families? Some scholars would draw the line for large families at three, others at four children, in the household. How many children are common among large families today? What is their social profile and how does it compare to large families historically?

Second, which social outcomes are associated with large families? Being in a large family can have varied effects on the children, parents, and the household as a whole. For instance, are large families poor or rich? Are parents with many children working more or less? How do children in large families perform academically?

All these questions require interdisciplinary collaboration (e.g. social policy, demography), but in this session we apply a sociological lens on inequality, social movements, public discourses and policy.

We showcase emerging findings from a new network on large families, but also welcome papers beyond the network.