Are you single? Do you feel you need a man, woman or partner because you constantly dread showing up to events without one? That’s normal because, societal pressures states that, women need to settle down before their biological clock expires or you may miss your chance to procreate. And hell, you can only be validated when someone calls you their boo, they picked you.
Well, science has finally caught up to a truth that logic dictates, that is, it is better to be single in the long run than to choose the wrong partner. And it may not be for the reasons you think...
The results of the 2018 study on "Partner selection and social capital in the status attainment process" were published in Social Science Research. It involved examining approximately 8,100 respondents, looking across their education, job status, parental background and status, partner background and socioeconomic status. The study showed that your parent's socioeconomic status directly impacted the type of job you got, the amount of money you made, and the jobs and lifestyle your kids were likely to lead.
What's this got to do with partner selection, well the study shows that it is better to be single and alone than to choose the wrong partner and this is why:
1. The higher your parental status is, the better your education will be
So let's dissect this. If you choose a spouse of a lower socioeconomic status and educational level than yourself, it is likely that your children will not attain the same level of education as if you were both of the same socio-economic and educational status.
2. Your parental status also dictated the type of partner that you would select in the long run
If you choose a partner of a lower socioeconomic and education status than yourself it is likely that your children too will choose the same. Making educational homogamy unlikely among your children.
3. Your spousal choice may ultimately affect the circles that your children are exposed to and ultimately choose for themselves
By not achieving educational homogamy at the highest status, it is likely that your children will not come into contact with people of higher socioeconomic and educational status themselves, also impacting their earning potential in the long run.
Now there were multiple other factors that were not explored. Marrying someone who is abusive physically or verbally would also have negative effects on the family dynamics in the long run. But what this study really shows is that when educational dis-homogamy exist it is likely that the stronger partner will carry most of the burden financially as well as play a stronger influence in assisting their children in obtaining higher educational goals.
There is also a strong indication that if your partner's family is also not financially robust, and require assistance, the financial burden and strain will also fall on the partner with a higher socioeconomic and educational status. For the partner with lower socioeconomic and educational status, the study shows that this union is advantageous to that party.
Therefore ladies, as I tell my daughter in my best "cloud" from "Trolls" voice, choose a husband wisely because if there is education dis-homogamy it is better for the male to be of higher socioeconomic and educational status.