Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/86587 
Year of Publication: 
2004
Series/Report no.: 
Tinbergen Institute Discussion Paper No. 04-073/3
Publisher: 
Tinbergen Institute, Amsterdam and Rotterdam
Abstract: 
In this paper we focus on the timing of marriages of women, whose marriages are associated with bride wealth payments, which are transfers from (the family of) the groom to the bride's family. Unmarried daughters could therefore be considered assets who, at times of need, can be cashed in. We investigate both theoretically and empirically to what extent the timing of a marriage of a daughter is affected by the economic conditions of the household from which she originates. We distinguish household specific wealth levels and two types of shocks: correlated (weather) shocks and idiosyncratic (wealth) shocks. We estimate a duration model using a unique panel survey of Zimbabwean smallholder farmers. The estimation results support the hypothesis that the timing of marriage is affected by household characteristics; girls from households that experienced a negative idiosyncratic (wealth) shock are more likely to marry.
Subjects: 
coping strategies
bride wealth
duration models
wealth shocks
dynamic programming model
JEL: 
Q12
C4
J12
D13
D91
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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