Center for Policy Research

Working Paper

The Dynamic Effect of Disability on Marriage: Evidence from the Social Security Disability Insurance Program

Ling Li & Perry Singleton

C.P.R. Working Paper No. 190

May 2016

Perry Singleton

Economics Department

Center for Policy Research

Parenting & Family

Perry Singleton

Abstract

This study examines the dynamic effect of disability on marriage. Data on disability and marriage come from the New Beneficiary Survey, designed to characterize new beneficiaries of the Social Security Disability Insurance Program. Using an event-study model, the study finds that disability onset decreased marriage among beneficiaries, but only at younger ages. The study further examines whether the effect of disability on marriage is due to formation, dissolution, or both, and whether the effect varies by educational attainment and subsequent mortality. The results highlight the importance of marriage selection in the oft-cited relationship between marriage and better health.

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