Not Even if You Were the Last Person on Earth!

Abstract

Using the 1987-1988 and 1992-1994 waves of the National Survey of Families and Households, the authors measure the association between Wave 1 responses to 12 questions on whom respondents would be “most willing to marry” and the likelihood of marriage by Wave 2. Preliminary analysis indicated that some questions about partner preferences are more predictive of marriage than others. Two hypotheses are developed to explain the pattern of effects. One is that being more willing to marry someone with characteristics that are less desirable to one’s same-sex peers increases the likelihood of marriage. The second hypothesis takes into account the preferences of the opposite sex. Both men and women are most willing to marry someone with more education or who earns more than they. Supporting the second hypothesis, analyses show that men who are willing to marry women with less education or who earn less are more likely to marry.