Volume 8 - Article 1 | Pages 1–30  

Who marries whom? Educational homogamy in Norway

By Gunn Elisabeth Birkelund, Johan Heldal

Abstract

A number of previous studies have documented a fairly high level of marital homogamy in Norway. Most of these studies, however, have been local and ethnographic, or based on national data measuring homogamy within a limited time period.
This study is based on a sample of 129 651 individuals from the 1980 Census. From this data bank, a sample of couples is constructed. Patterns of educational homogamy across five ten-year cohorts, born between 1900 and 1949, are compared. The results show a decline in educational homogamy across these cohorts, both in absolute terms and when controlling for the general increase in educational level during the period.

Author’s Affiliation

• Gunn Elisabeth Birkelund - Universitetet i Oslo, Norway EMAIL
• Johan Heldal - Statistisk sentralbyrå (Statistics Norway), Norway EMAIL

Most recent similar articles in Demographic Research

Decomposing delayed first marriage and birth across cohorts: The role of increased employment instability among men in Japan
Volume 52 - Article 21    | Keywords: cohort analysis, delayed effects, delayed marriage, delayed parenthood, Japan, precarious employment

The changing inter-relationship between partnership dynamics and fertility trends in Europe and the United States: A review
Volume 52 - Article 7    | Keywords: childbearing, Europe, family complexity, fertility, fertility, marriage, partnership, United States of America

Educational trends in cohort fertility by birth order: A comparison of England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland
Volume 51 - Article 36    | Keywords: birth order, cohort analysis, cross-national study, England, family size, fertility, Northern Ireland, parity, Scotland, Wales

Between money and intimacy: Brideprice, marriage, and women’s position in contemporary China
Volume 50 - Article 46    | Keywords: brideprice, China, divorce, family, family law, gender inequalities, marriage

Age-heterogamous partnerships: Prevalence and partner differences by marital status and gender composition
Volume 50 - Article 23    | Keywords: age heterogamy, assortative mating, cohabitation, marriage, same-sex couples, unions