Homogamy in Social Characteristics

Abstract

Previous studies of homagamy show that married couples tend more to resemble than to differ from each other in physical and psychological traits. Data secured from one thousand engaged couples living in the Chicago metropolitan area make it possible to present the evidence on homagamy for social characteristics. In all but six of the fifty-one social characteristics studied, the excess of the actual over the expected percentage of resemblance between members of the couple is statistically significant. The tendency for homogamy, however, varies by different social characteristics, as may be indicated by the mean value of C for groups of items as follows: religious affiliation and behavior, .54; family backgrounds, .38; courtship behavior, .33; conceptions of marriage, .31; social participation, .24; and family relationships, .12.

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