Repartnering of Women in the United States: The Role of Economic Hardship and Vulnerability

Alessandro Di Nallo
Katya Ivanova, University of Amsterdam
Nicoletta Balbo, Bocconi University

We examine how women’s economic conditions are related to their behaviours on the repartnering market in the United States. Using data from the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG), we assess whether women’s socio-economic position is predictive of the probability of repartnering. Second, we examine whether any potential inequalities in repartnering are more or less pronounced for mothers than for childless women. Finally, we study how the possible accumulation of disadvantages on the mating market (i.e., lower socio-economic position and motherhood) affects individual repartnering behaviours under conditions of economic strain (i.e., the Great Recession of the late 2000s).

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 Presented in Session 9. Marriage, Family, Households, & Unions; Gender, Race, & Ethnicity