Race/Ethnic Differences in Marital Expectations of Adolescents: The Role of Romantic Relationships

Sarah R. Crissey, University of Texas at Austin

Despite substantial research on the race gap in marriage, differences in marital expectations has been relatively understudied. This research assesses the race/ethnic differences in adolescent’s expected age at marriage, with particular focus on dating and romantic relationships and their association with marriage expectations. Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, I find that Non-Hispanic Whites are significantly more likely to expect marriage by age 25 compared to those from other race/ethnic backgrounds, most markedly in contrast to Non-Hispanic Blacks. This research describes adolescent romantic relationships, and explores race/ethnic differences in dating to explain the differences in marriage expectations. Characteristics of romantic and sexual relationships are highly associated with marriage expectations. Moreover, the analyses show race differences in adolescent romantic relationships, but these differences in dating do not fully account for differences in expectations of marriage.