Marriage and Educational Attainment: A Dynamic Approach to First Union Formation

Abstract

The article looks at the relationship between partnership formation & women's education in the Czech Republic. Education can serve as a proxy for cultural capital & earning potential. Therefore, it is expected to play a significant role in partnership formation. Analyses of data from the Family & Fertility Survey show that the level of education has an impact on the timing of the first union. However, when school enrollment is controlled, education does not play a significant role in the tendency to enter into marriage or cohabitation. It is not possible to demonstrate that the accumulation of human capital itself has an impact on union formation in the Czech Republic. Nor do data confirm the expectation that the influence of education should increase after the collapse of communism & the introduction of the market economy.