Inter-Religious Marriage and Migration

This study analyzes the influence of inter-religious marriage and differing levels of church attendance within a married couple on migration behavior. We hypothesize that the propensity for migration is higher for inter-faith couples than for couples with the same religion and for couples who attend church at different frequencies. Largely, this research, as well as research on other differences between husbands and wives, indicates that inter-group married couples have higher migration rates than intra-groups couples. Data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth in 1979 was used to analyze the relationships between these aspects of religious identities and migration, and between church attendance and migration. Other determines utilized were age, education, and length of residence. Results actually show slightly lower migration odds for inter-group couples than for intra-group couples.