Making Big Decisions: The Impact of Moves on Marriage among U.S. Army Personnel

Susan Carter and Abigail Wozniak

Journal of Human Resources, 2023, vol. 58, issue 3, 713-754

Abstract: We use exogenously determined, long-distance relocations of U.S. Army soldiers to investigate the impact of moving on marriage. In an event study analysis, we find that marriage rates increase sharply around the time of a move. Reduced-form exposure analysis reveals that an additional move over a five-year period increases the likelihood of marriage by 14 percent, a magnitude similar to those in observational data on civilians. Moves increase childbearing by a similar magnitude, suggesting that marriages induced by a move are formed with long-term intentions. We explore implications of our findings for theories of marriage related to search, bargaining, and decision-making costs.

JEL-codes: J1 J12 J13 J61 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
Note: DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.59.1.0919-10429R1
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Working Paper: Making Big Decisions: The Impact of Moves on Marriage among U.S. Army Personnel (2018)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:uwp:jhriss:v:58:y:2023:i:3:p:713-754

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