Union Formation Among Men in the U.S.: Does Having Prior Children Matter?

Our study investigates whether fatherhood, and specifically involvement with nonresident children, influence menʹs entrance into marital and cohabiting unions. Using the National Survey of Families and Households, our findings suggest that neither resident nor nonresident children affect menʹs chances of entering a new marriage, but nonresident children have a positive effect on cohabitation. The positive association between nonresident children and menʹs union formation is not uniform; instead, we find that it is involvement with nonresident children, specifically visitation, that enhances menʹs chances of forming new unions. Whereas womenʹs obligations to children from prior unions represent a resource drain that lowers their chances of union formation, our analysis suggests that involved nonresident fathers are more likely to enter subsequent unions than other men.