Religiosity, Homogamy, and Marital Adjustment

Abstract

This article explores the relationship between religiosity, denominational homogamy, religiosity homogamy, and marital adjustment. Using a statewide sample of spouses in first marriages (N = 1,394) and remarriages (N = 601), the authors find that within-group differences in religiosity, denominational homogamy, and religiosity homogamy are not as prevalent for spouses in remarriages. Overall, husbands and wives in first marriages who are very religious have significantly higher marital adjustment scores than spouses who are less religious. Similarly, husbands and wives in first marriages who share the same religious denomination report higher marital adjustment scores than spouses who report different denominations. For spouses in both first marriages and remarriages, those who report that they are “both religious” have higher marital adjustment scores than spouses where both partners are not religious, or where only the wife is religious. Possible reasons for the within-group similarities and differences are explored, particularly for spouses in remarriages.

Religious Dynamics and Marital Dissolution: A Latent Class Approach

“…Similar to past research, highly religious couples exhibit high marital quality and lower risk of divorce (Schramm et al, 2012;Vaaler et al, 2009). Unbalanced couples fared better than secular couples, which may confirm the findings of previous studies that the beliefs of the wife are more important to keeping the marriage intact (Call & Heaton, 1997), and that attendance dissimilarity is only be problematic if the husband attends more than the wife (see Vaaler et al, 2009), though the present study did not encounter enough cases to explicitly support this latter finding.…”

“…For husbands, being in an unbalanced marriage leads to significantly lower marital quality relative to those in holy marriages (<.01). In general, the most traditionally religious couples (i.e., holy couples) tend to report the highest marital quality, a finding that is consistent with past research (see Schramm et al, 2012). Thus, there is some evidence that both partner similarity and high religiosity matter in terms of marital quality.…”

“…In terms of religion and marriage, religiosity often predicts marital stability and decreases the odds of divorce (Call & Heaton, 1997;Lehrer & Chiswick, 1993;Mahoney et al, 2001;Nock et al, 2008). Both frameworks may complement each other, for couples who are similarly high in religiosity often have better marital outcomes (see Call & Heaton, 1997;Schramm, Marshall, Harris, & Lee, 2012;Vaaler et al, 2009).…”

“…Highly religious couples tend to experience better marital quality (Schramm et al, 2012), even when taking into account potential social desirability (Schumm, Bollman, & Jurich, 1982). Couples with high religiosity also have lower odds of divorce (Call & Heaton, 1997;Lehrer & Chiswick, 1993;Mahoney et al, 2001;Nock et al, 2008).…”

Fundamental Factors in Marital Satisfaction: An Assessment of Brazilian Couples

“…For example, homogamy is thought to be essential for building a satisfactory partnership. Russell and Wells (1991); Epstein and Guttman, (1985), Lichter and Carmall (2009) ;Scharamm, Marshall, Harris and Lee (2011) suggest that people tend to select similar characteristics in partners, like: age group, attractiveness, social class, intelligence, religion, education, physical traits (looks), personality, among others.…”