Abstract
While much research has been devoted to the implications of the one child policy (OCP) with regard to China’s population age structure and marriage market shortages, very little research has touched upon the OCP’s effects on China’s marriage market in an ethnically diverse context. The OCP has not necessarily caused interethnic marriage in China. However, its effects on the marriage market and the fact that it has not applied to most ethnic minorities has had significant implications for China’s marriageable males and females. This paper will argue that the propensity to ‘marry out’ is based upon a number of factors including ethnic background, gains to marriage, education, unemployment, etc. The benefits associated with interethnic marriage may suggest that intermarriage has become a rational choice for certain women in Chinese society.
Keywords: interethnic marriage; one child policy; OCP; China; education; ethnic minorities; ethnicity