Social Origins, Educational Attainment and the Timing of Marriage and First Birth among Korean Women

Abstract

Examination of the relationships between social origins educational attainment and the timing of first birth for a sample of 988 Korean women who were currently married married only once had borne at least 1 child had no premarital birth or conception and were aged 30 to 44 in 1971. Path analysis techniques were employed. Residential and religious background as well as educational attainment were directly linked to age at first marriage but not timing of 1st birth. Only age at 1st marriage had a significant direct impact on 1st birth timing and its influence was negative. As a result of these patterns the indirect effects of social origins and educational attainment on the timing of 1st birth were negative. Thus urban residential and Christian religious background as well as higher levels of educational attainment yielded a later age at marriage but in the process a shorter marriage-1st birth interval. These findings suggest that the demographic benefit accruing from higher social status greater education and delayed marriage may be somewhat lessened. (Authors)