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Title: Who Marries Differently-Aged Spouses? Education, Occupation, Earnings, Ability and Appearance

Citation Type: Miscellaneous

Publication Year: 2012

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Abstract: In direct contrast to conventional wisdom and most economic models of marital age gaps, we present robust evidence that men and women who are married to differently-aged spouses are negatively selected. Empirical results show striking evidence of lower cognitive ability, lower educational attainment, lower occupational wages, lower earnings, and even less attractive appearance among those married to an older or younger spouse. These results, all obtained controlling for age of marriage in samples of first marriages, are consistent with a model in which individuals who obtain more years of formal schooling and enter occupations with greater upward mobility interact more heavily with similarly-aged peers and are ultimately more likely to marry similarly-aged spouses.

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Authors: McKinnish, Terra; Mansour, Hani

Publisher: University of Colorado Denver

Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Education, Family and Marriage

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