An Economic Analysis of Interclass Marriage

This paper investigates mate selection behavior with respect to both class position and individuals characteristics in the marriage market. The theoretical prediction of model can suggest not only those ones that belong to upper and lower class will marry within own class but also they can form the interclass marriage. Accordingly, the hypothesis is that the persons in upper and lower classes marry within own class. Logit regressions show that the ratio of probability of intraclass to interclass marriage decreases as partners belong to upper and lower classes in Tehran. This result indicates that partners’ differentiations measured by love and quality in family formation, are important determinants in mate selection rather than class position of individuals in a traditional society such as Tehran.