New article by Dr Yang Hu now available: Educational and age assortative mating in China

Yang Hu’s new publication with Yue Qian (University of British Columbia, Canada) on educational and age assortative mating in remarriage in China was recently published in Demographic Research. This open access paper, along with full replication materials, can be accessed here.      

Family change in China is characterized by increasing divorce rates and a growing number of remarriages, like in many Western countries. Assortative mating is a crucial part of the institution of (re)marriage and plays a key role in the (re)production of socioeconomic inequality. However, no research has examined assortative mating in remarriage in China, despite the recent emergence of studies on this topic in Western contexts.

This is the first study that has compared assortative mating patterns between first-married and remarried people in China. This study highlights the importance of marriage order – as an advantage for the never married and a disadvantage for the previously married – in shaping marital mobility in China.