| This dissertation advances research on the impact of availability conditions by examining the extent to which mate selection patterns differ in varying marriage market contexts, with a particular focus on understanding racial differences in partner choice and marriage rates. Using data from the 1980, 1990 and 2000 Census IPUMS samples, this dissertation includes fixed effects models, decomposition methods and simulation methods; it also improves on previous study by utilizing and comparing both mutual measures of family formation and sex-specific marriage measures.; Results indicate that availability conditions structure partner choice such that socially distant marriage is both more attractive as measured by Schoen's Harmonic Mean Function, and rates to distant marriages are higher, under male scarcity conditions as compared to surplus conditions. Utilizing race-specific models and local geography to capture marriage market opportunities, I also find that racial differences in sorting persist once taking into account differential exposure to constrained supply. My results support previous results using aggregate level measures of marriage and partner availability, however I also can tease out substantially more information on sorting patterns and response to marriage market conditions, illustrating the importance of local measurements. Findings also suggest that while differential exposure to poor availability conditions is certainly an important factor, there is a differential response to the same types of conditions that contributes far more to racial differences in attraction to marriage.; Analyses indicate that availability conditions have become more favorable for marriage over the last two decades, and that declines in attraction to marriage are largely responsible for changes in marriage rates. I also find that while exposure to poor marriage market conditions may have declined, the pattern of higher attraction and marriage rates to distant marriage under conditions of male scarcity continues in cross-sectional analyses of 1990 and 2000. This dissertation highlights the need for future research to further develop theory accounting for the dual nature of marital decision-making and account for the kinds of changes that affect attraction to marriage. |
