Citation
Arocho, Rachel R. & Kamp Dush, Claire M. (2020). “Best-Laid Plans”: Barriers to Meeting Marital Timing Desires over the Life Course. Marriage & Family Review, 56(7), 633-656. PMCID: PMC7402592Abstract
Most youth desire to marry, and often around a certain age, but many individuals marry earlier or later than originally desired. Off-time marriage could have consequences for subsequent relationship stability and mental health. Whereas barriers to marriage goals in the short term have been studied extensively, predictors of meeting marital timing expectations over the life course are less well understood. This study examined possible barriers, including socioeconomic characteristics and family experiences, both background and formation, to meeting marital timing desires by age 40 using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 cohort (NLSY79). Multinomial logistic regression revealed that greater education, religiousness, cohabitation, and premarital childbearing were associated with delayed or forgone marriage, but associations varied by gender and the age at which respondents stated their expectations.URL
https://doi.org/10.1080/01494929.2020.1737620Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
2020Journal Title
Marriage & Family ReviewAuthor(s)
Arocho, Rachel R.Kamp Dush, Claire M.