Content area
Abstract
This research examines the factors which affect the choice of formal or informal marriage in Brazil, and the consequences of that choice for marital stability and fertility. Brazil, with its diverse marriage forms and unique history is an ideal setting for this study. The 1984 National Household Survey and a series of qualitative interviews are used for this research. Marriage choice is a function of cultural, socioeconomic, and structural factors, weighed differently by women of different ages and marriage orders. Type of marriage remains a strong predictor of marital stability and fertility even when other factors are controlled for. Marital stability itself plays an important role in distinguishing informal marriages from formal, and having children contributes to marital stability. The fact that women who enter informal marriages are likely to experience more than one marriage results in higher fertility for these women than occurs within each particular marriage. Informal marriage appears not to be entirely advantageous to women because it is less stable than formal marriage, and women remain responsible for children after separation. They are aware of these risks and often prefer formal marriage.
