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much higher than those reported by Liang and Ito (1999). The
difference is likely due to the fact that their study dealt with Asian
Americans born in the mid-1920s to 1970, while the current study
analyzed individuals born in the mid-1970s to early 1980s. Figures
in these two studies reveal a cohort shift toward higher rates of
cohabitation among Asian American immigrants.
For first marriages, East Asian and Filipino Americans are
significantly less likely than whites to have married in young
adulthood. Across Asian ethnic groups, East Asian and Filipino
Americans delay first marriages longer than South Asian Americans
(comparison between Filipinos and South Asians not shown but
marginally significant at .10 level). Results also highlight the
importance of nativity status: the odds of first-generation Asian
Americans to remain single in young adulthood are 64% lower
when compared to the third-generation. This shows that as Asian
Americans become more acculturated to the mainstream culture
they are more likely to delay their marriages than those who just
arrived in the U.S. Given that a smaller proportion of South Asian
immigrants completed tertiary education, it is not surprising to find
that more of them were already married in young adulthood. The
results correspond to prior research showing how school enrolment
among women is associated with delayed timing of first marriages
(Brien & Lillard, 1994; Mensch, Singh, & Casterline, 2005). It also
underscores the fact that ethnic variations should not be
overlooked when studying Asian American union formation.
Regarding the outcomes of first cohabitation and first
marriage, the odds of turning a first cohabitation into a marriage is
nearly 80% higher for Filipino Americans than that of East Asian
Americans. This is particularly true if the first cohabiting partner is
white than when he/she is from other racial minority group. The
pattern reveal here suggests that although Filipino Americans are
not more likely to cohabit than the other two Asian subgroups,
their cohabiting unions function more like a “trial marriage” and
are more likely to lead to long-term marital relationships.
Moreover, co-residential unions formed between Asian Americans