Optimal Weights for Marital Sorting Measures

TY - JOUR

T1 - Optimal Weights for Marital Sorting Measures

AU - Almar, Frederik

AU - Schulz, Bastian

PY - 2024/1

Y1 - 2024/1

N2 - Changing distributions of male and female types affect the measurement of education-based marriage market sorting. We develop a weighting strategy that minimizes the distortion of sorting measures due to changing type distributions. The optimal weights reflect that female type distributions have changed relatively more in recent decades. Based on our weighted measure, we document increased sorting in Denmark between 1980 and 2018. Alternative measures suggest flat or decreasing trends.

AB - Changing distributions of male and female types affect the measurement of education-based marriage market sorting. We develop a weighting strategy that minimizes the distortion of sorting measures due to changing type distributions. The optimal weights reflect that female type distributions have changed relatively more in recent decades. Based on our weighted measure, we document increased sorting in Denmark between 1980 and 2018. Alternative measures suggest flat or decreasing trends.

KW - Positive Assortative Mating

KW - Marriage Market Sorting

KW - Homophily

KW - Educational Attainment

KW - Sorting Measures

KW - Aggregation

KW - Sorting measures

KW - Marriage market sorting

KW - Positive assortative mating

KW - Educational attainment

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85180603774&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.econlet.2023.111497

DO - 10.1016/j.econlet.2023.111497

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0165-1765

VL - 234

JO - Economics Letters

JF - Economics Letters

M1 - 111497

ER -