Semi-formalized cohabitation and subsequent marital stability in Iceland, 1995-2013

Abstract

Research findings usually suggest that premarital cohabitation is associated with increased risk of marital dissolution. In Iceland,
cohabitation has been semi-formalized and if people register cohabitation,
they acquire certain rights and undertake some obligations. Using data on
registered cohabitation enables us to investigate the proposed association
from a somewhat different perspective and to explore any association between a well-established, yet informal policy of registered cohabitation
and subsequent risks of marital dissolution. The data allow us to focus on
couples that intend to live together while weeding out couples that merely “drift” into coresidential unions. We use register data in our calculations
covering all women born in Iceland during 1962–1997, their childbearing and union histories. We analyze the data by means of event history
techniques and present the results as relative risks of union dissolution.
Our estimates indicate that registered cohabitation in Iceland is associated with lower risk of marital break-ups, and that this finding is robust.
We do not detect any changes in the relationship during the study period
(1995–2013). We interpret the context-specific findings in support of arguments such as those posed by the trial marriage hypothesis, suggesting
that semi-formalized cohabitation results in lower risks of divorce.