A gender perspective on preferences for marriage among cohabitating couples

Abstract

This paper addresses the sex differences in cohabiters' marriage preferences, which have received very little attention in the family literature. According to Norwegian survey data from 1996, cohabiting men are more hesitant to marry than cohabiting women. For example, childless male cohabiters are more worried than their female partner that another lifestyle will be expected after a marriage, and they voice more doubt about the value of the relationship. This could mean that the men generally are more individualistically oriented and therefore more attracted to single life than the women. In-depth interviews support this, and also suggest that men are less willing to yield to a normative pressure to marry. On the other hand, women were more concerned with the costs of the wedding.

Cohabitation and marriage in Austria

“…This mentality also hinges on such external factors as having achieved a stable financial situation and employment (as shown in the previous section), leading Cherlin to assert that marriage is a "marker of prestige " (2004: 855). Our focus group participants reported a keener interest in marriage among women, which is in line with the finding from Norway that men are more hesitant to marry than women (Reneflot 2006). However, American research on gender differences also indicates that men initiate the progression towards marriage (Sassler and Miller 2011), and that the male partner"s happiness and marriage plans are more decisive for the actual transition from cohabitation to marriage than those of the female partner (Brown 2000).…”

Does cancer affect marriage rates?

“…Cancer may, however, make both the ill and the healthy person more inclined to formalize their relationship, regardless of its' quality. A recent Norwegian study suggests that female cohabitants have stronger preferences for marriage than males have [44]. If cancer makes younger men more inclined to marry compared to other, healthy men, this could increase their marriage rates.…”

Men’s economic status and marital transitions of fragile families

“…Previous studies, based on populations in the United States and cohabitors in Europe, have demonstrated that expectations for marriage are often quite high Reneflot 2006). Despite theoretical presumptions regarding the association between economic status and marriage, relatively little is known about how women"s marital views are shaped by their partners" economic circumstances.…”

“…Though weakening in importance, men"s ability to fill the provider role remains a consistent requirement for marriage across the class spectrum (Gibson-Davis, Edin, and McLanahan 2005;Sassler and Goldscheider 2004;Smock, Manning, and Porter 2005), as well as across nations (Heard 2011;Kravdal 1999;Reneflot 2006;Wiik, Bernhardt, and Noack 2010). While various measures of a "good living" are important prerequisites for marriage, fiscal concerns appear to be less salient for transitions to parenthood or for informal unions (Gibson-Davis 2009).…”