Sociology Commons^™

Explaining Racial And Ethnic Differences In Marriage Among New, Unwed Parents, Kristen Harknett, Sara Mclanahan

Kristen Harknett

This article uses new data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing study to examine the reasons why white, Mexican-American, and other Hispanic parents are approximately 2.5 times more likely than African-American parents to marry within the 30 months after a nonmarital birth. Combining Fragile Families microdata with 2000 U.S. Census data shows that marriage market conditions exert a large influence on marriage decisions, even among couples that already have formed a romantic relationship and had a child together. The findings also show that an undersupply of employed African-American men can explain a large portion of the racial and ethnic …