So happy together … Examining the association between relationship happiness, socio-economic status, and family transitions in the UK
So happy together … Examining the association between relationship happiness, socio-economic status, and family transitions in the UK
The increases in cohabitation and in childbearing within cohabitation raise questions about who marries. Most studies have found that childbearing within cohabitation is associated with disadvantage; here, we examine the role of relationship happiness and whether it helps to explain this association. Using the UK Household Longitudinal Study (2009–17), our competing risk hazard models follow respondents as they transition: (1) from cohabitation into marriage or childbearing; and (2) from marriage or cohabitation into childbearing. We find that marriage risks are highest among individuals who are happiest with their relationship. On average, the association between relationship quality and childbearing operates through marriage: the happiest individuals marry, and those who marry have children. While higher socio-economic status is weakly associated with marriage, conception, and separation, the associations do not differ by relationship happiness. The findings indicate that overall, relationship happiness appears to be most salient for transitions into marriage.
United Kingdom, childbearing, cohabitation, happiness, marriage, relationship quality, separation, socio-economic status
1-18
Perelli-Harris, Brienna
9d3d6b25-d710-480b-8677-534d58ebe9ed
Blom, Niels
86fa14cb-1402-453f-a01c-3c919925baae
19 October 2021
Perelli-Harris, Brienna
9d3d6b25-d710-480b-8677-534d58ebe9ed
Blom, Niels
86fa14cb-1402-453f-a01c-3c919925baae
Perelli-Harris, Brienna and Blom, Niels
(2021)
So happy together … Examining the association between relationship happiness, socio-economic status, and family transitions in the UK.
Population Studies, .
(doi:10.1080/00324728.2021.1984549).
Abstract
The increases in cohabitation and in childbearing within cohabitation raise questions about who marries. Most studies have found that childbearing within cohabitation is associated with disadvantage; here, we examine the role of relationship happiness and whether it helps to explain this association. Using the UK Household Longitudinal Study (2009–17), our competing risk hazard models follow respondents as they transition: (1) from cohabitation into marriage or childbearing; and (2) from marriage or cohabitation into childbearing. We find that marriage risks are highest among individuals who are happiest with their relationship. On average, the association between relationship quality and childbearing operates through marriage: the happiest individuals marry, and those who marry have children. While higher socio-economic status is weakly associated with marriage, conception, and separation, the associations do not differ by relationship happiness. The findings indicate that overall, relationship happiness appears to be most salient for transitions into marriage.
Text
00324728.2021
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More information
Accepted/In Press date: 8 July 2021
e-pub ahead of print date: 19 October 2021
Published date: 19 October 2021
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This research was supported by UK Economic and Social Research Grant ES/R005907/1.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
Keywords:
United Kingdom, childbearing, cohabitation, happiness, marriage, relationship quality, separation, socio-economic status
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 452198
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/452198
ISSN: 0032-4728
PURE UUID: d5e0cdd4-57b6-4f13-ab8e-39eb74e1726c
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Date deposited: 29 Nov 2021 17:32
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 03:23
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