Determinants of the Marriage Behavior of Russians: Does Religiosity Matter?

The problem of the study lies in the fact that despite the prolonged influence of religions on society and the high level of religious involvement among the population of Russia, since the mid-20th century, there has been a persistent situation with divorces and the popularization of unofficial forms of marriage, which contradicts the traditional structure of marital behavior. This problem persists even in the conditions of active promotion of traditional family values ​​in the masses of Russian society. Among representatives of various denominations in Russia, there is a discrepancy in the degree of involvement in religion, which may indicate different degrees of acceptance of the religious value-normative system and the ambiguity of its influence on an individual's worldview and behavior, in this case, on marital behavior. In the literature review, we mainly relied on the structural-functional approach to the study of marital behavior and the socio-economic perception of marriages and divorces. Microanalysis of elements of the marriage market and the behavior of its participants was conducted using G. Becker's marriage market theory, J. Homans' exchange theory, and R. Senter's instrumental theory of choosing a marital partner. Empirical studies on the influence of some important socio-demographic characteristics of marriage market participants on their marital behavior were also considered. Special attention was paid to religion and religiosity as independent concepts. The main approach chosen was the synthesis of the theories of E. Durkheim and M. Weber, as well as the analysis of religious norms and values ​​in connection with marriage. Religious norms and values ​​play a key role in forming marital unions, determining both the choice of partners and the stability of marriage. Research shows that religious compatibility of spouses can significantly affect their marital satisfaction and the likelihood of divorce. In this work, we consider religion not only as a cultural and social phenomenon but also as an important factor influencing marital behavior and the stability of marriage. Thus, our study will be a continuation of existing theories, enriching them with current data and new empirical findings. Since we are interested in the dynamics of marital behavior, the empirical basis of our study is panel data on adult individuals for 2016-2021, i.e., 25-30 waves of surveys, containing the variables necessary for the study. It was found that religious beliefs do play a significant role in choosing a marital partner, with both women and men inclined to choose partners with similar or close degrees of faith. The probability of entering into a formal marriage will be higher for those identifying themselves as believers, and for Orthodox believers, the probability is lower than for non-religious Russians. The probability of entering into a formal marriage in the next year does not depend on the level of religiosity (how religious or non-religious a person considers themselves). The probability of entering into an informal marriage does not depend on religiosity or non-religiosity.