Love at second sight: remarriages in Turkish and Moroccan communities in Belgium

Partner selection patterns in transition: The case of Turkish and Moroccan minorities in Belgium

“…Differentiating according to marriage rank shows that the prevalence of transnational marriages is higher among remarriages, confirming earlier findings (Dupont et al 2019b). The difference ranges between 11.03 and 32.73 percentage points.…”

“…Therefore, we define individuals who migrate in the same year of the marriage or later as marriage migrants because registering a marriage gives transnational partners the right to migrate to and reside in Belgium (EMN 2017). This operationalization mirrors previous studies working on similar register data (e.g., Dupont et al 2017b;Dupont et al 2019b;Eeckhaut et al 2011;Van Kerckem et al 2013).…”

“…Especially the first generation chooses a transnational marriage when remarrying. The prevalence of mixed marriages is lower among higher-order compared to first marriages, as reported by Dupont et al (2019b), but only for the first generation. Among the second generation, and especially women, the prevalence of mixed marriages is similar or higher among remarriages.…”

“…For the same reasons, transnational marriages also are more prevalent among Turkish compared to Moroccan minorities (Carol, Ersanilli, and Wagner 2014;Lievens 1999). Furthermore, minority members who remarry choose a transnational partner more often than those who marry for the first time (Dupont et al 2019b). The local co-ethnic marriage market may be perceived as restricted when one has been married before due to the stigma of divorce (Koelet et al 2008).…”

“…Because these trends have only started to appear recently, there is little insight into their evolution and characteristics. Differences according to migrant generation, first or higher-order partnerships, and differences between cohabitation and marriage, for example, could be expected but have not yet been studied (Hartung et al 2011;Dupont et al 2019b;Lievens 1999). Furthermore, it remains unclear to what extent changes observed in earlier studies have continued to carry on.…”