Assortative Mating among Unmarried Parents with a Newborn: Differences by Marital Transition after Childbirth

Shirley H. Liu, University of Miami

Assortative mating, the tendency for individuals to choose partners with similar characteristics, is a prominent feature of the marriage market. Existing evidence on assortative matching is based primarily on married couples/parents, and studies on unmarried parents do not distinguish between unmarried parents who marry after childbirth, and those who remained persistently unmarried. Using data from the FFCWS, this study examines assortative mating patterns among unmarried parents, between parents who marry after childbirth and parents who remained unmarried. In addition, we examine whether the differences in assortative mating patterns can be explained by differences in marriage market conditions suggested by economic theories. We find that unmarried parents who marry after childbirth are less assortatively matched by age, education, and race; but more assortatively matched by earnings, compared to parents who remained unmarried. Significant differences in assortative mating patterns by race are found, with the largest difference found between whites and Hispanics.