Working Paper: NBER ID: w19438
Authors: James Banks; Elaine Kelly; James P. Smith
Abstract: In this paper, we investigate the issue of partner selection in the health of individuals who are at least fifty years old in England and the United States. We find a strong and positive association in family background variables including education of partners and their parents. Adult health behaviors such as smoking, drinking, and exercise are more positively associated in England compared to the United States. Childhood health indicators are also positively associated across partners. \n\nWe also investigated pre and post partnership smoking behavior of couples. There exists strong positive assortative mating in smoking in that smokers are much more likely to partner with smokers and non-smokers with non-smokers. This relationship is far stronger in England compared to the United States. In the United States, we find evidence of asymmetric partner influence in smoking in that men's pre marriage smoking behavior influences his female partner's post marriage smoking behavior but there does not appear to be a parallel influence of women's pre-marriage smoking on their male partner's post-marital smoking. These relationships are much more parallel across genders in England.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: I0
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Educational attainment of one partner (I24) | Educational attainment of the other partner (I24) |
| Adult health behaviors in England (I12) | Adult health behaviors in the United States (I12) |
| Men's pre-marriage smoking behavior (J12) | Female partner's post-marriage smoking behavior (J12) |
| Poor childhood health (I14) | Future marital disruptions (J12) |
| Smokers (I12) | Non-smokers (I12) |