Gender and the rural–urban divide: family wealth and first marriage among young adults in China

Abstract In recent decades, owing to rapidly rising marriage expenses, family wealth has gained importance in regard to one’s first marriage. Nevertheless, little is known about how family wealth shapes first marriage in China, where gender and the rural–urban divide affect marriage practices. Drawing on six waves of data from the China Family Panel Studies, I used discrete-time hazard models and a prospective research design to examine the link between family wealth and the subsequent first marriage of young adults aged 16–40 years, and to identify how this link varies by gender and hukou status. The findings indicate a strong positive association between household total asset value and first marriage for rural men and women, and urban men. They also show that ownership of major household assets was positively associated with men’s first marriage, but not with that of women. However, household savings were more predictive for rural women’s first marriage, compared to that of rural men. Family wealth inequality provides a new lens for understanding the marriage patterns of young adults in China. Gendered marriage practices and family wealth arrangements may contribute to women’s disadvantaged positions in wealth possession and accumulation and result in the perpetuation of gender inequality.