Taking One’s Time? The Association between the Duration to Cohabitation and Union Outcomes

Sharon Sassler, Cornell University
Katherine Michelmore, Cornell University

Some research suggests that young adults “slow down” the tempo of relationship progression. Yet little is known about how rapidly sexual relationships progress into shared living, whether this progression differs by social class, or if initial stages in relationship progression are associated with subsequent union transitions. We use the 2006-2010 National Survey of Family Growth, focusing on women ages 18 to 36 who were in a sexual relationship within the previous year, to assess what proportion entered cohabiting unions, and how rapidly shared living arrangements are formed. Preliminary results reveal an educational hierarchy in the tempo to shared living; the least educated (LTHS) women transition into shared living several months sooner than do women with a high school degree. College educated women, on average, take more than twelve months longer to enter cohabiting unions than high school graduates. Rapid duration to cohabitation is negatively associated with marital transitions.