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“Ethnic Variations in Characteristics of First Unions” 199
remain single (OR=0.58, p<.05) than East Asians, net of all
socio-demographic controls and generational status. First-
generation Asian Americans have a much lower chance of
remaining unmarried than their third-generation peers (OR=0.36,
p<.01). The finding supports hypothesis H2 that stated East Asian
and Filipino Americans are less likely to be married during young
adulthood than their South Asian counterparts.
(C) The Outcome of First Cohabitation
In Table 3c, East Asian and Filipino Americans are less likely to
end their first cohabitation in marriage in the baseline model
(OR=0.47, p<.01 and OR=0.68, p<.05, see models on the left).
East Asians remain much less likely to marry after first cohabitation
even after generational status is considered (OR=0.54, p<.05).
This statistical significance remains when the race of partner is
added to Model 3. On the right side of Table 3c, South Asians are
more likely (OR=1.71, p<.10) to turn a first cohabitation into a
marriage in the baseline model, but the effect disappeared when a
set of covariates was added in Model 2. When the race of the
partner is taken into account, Filipino Americans become more
likely (OR=1.78, p<.10) to marry their first cohabiting partner
than East Asians. One intriguing finding to be noted is that Asian
Americans who cohabit with a white partner (OR=1.70, p<.10)
are more likely to end up in marriage, compared to when the partner
comes from other racial minority groups. These findings support
hypothesis H3 that stated first cohabitation experienced by Filipino
Americans are more likely to end in marriage than those of their
East and South Asian peers.
(D) Premarital Cohabitation Before First Marriage
As presented in Table 3m (models in the left side), South
Asians are significantly less likely than whites to have a first
marriage preceded by cohabitation (OR=0.39, p<.01), but this