Mate Selection

Mate Selection Marriage market: potential spouses are evaluated on the basis of the resources they have to offer and individuals compete with each other for the spouse they want most by offering their own resources in return Two types of resources Socio-economic Produces economic well-being and status People maximize their income and status to attract potential spouse Gender difference: men= prestige in paid work women= class background, age, physical attractiveness, cultural participation, but recently, womens earning power has become increasingly important because microstructure of family economy has changed a great deal since after WW2 Cultural Similarity (value opinion, language, religion, ethnicity etc) leads to personal attraction and better mutual understanding, common basis for conversation and joint activities Marriage squeeze Demographic imbalance in which the number of potential brides does not equal the number of potential grooms Female squeeze (excess of eligible women) Male squeeze