Partnership constellation and poverty beyond the migrant/non-migrant dichotomy: An exploratory, gendered analysis in Germany
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20377/jfr-1268Keywords:
Poverty, Partnership, Gender, Migration, GermanyAbstract
Objective: We analyse poverty across different-sex partnership constellations, examining how risk factors - such as low education and weak labour market attachment - cluster differently across these constellations. We distinguish between men and women of non-migrant and migrant descent, as well as EU and non-EU migrants.
Background: Previous studies have investigated the link between partnership constellations and poverty, often overlooking migration status despite migrants' heightened poverty risk. Moreover, gender differences and partnership patterns beyond the simple migrant–non-migrant divide received little attention.
Method: Using 2019 German Microcensus data, we map the distribution of different-sex partnership constellations by gender, migration status, and poverty risk factors. We analyse poverty differences with linear probability models, exploring how risk factors vary across constellations and by gender.
Results: We find the highest prevalence of poverty risk factors and poverty in partnerships between two non-EU migrants. Low education is a more important poverty risk factor than weak labour market attachment for most constellations. However, among partnerships involving non-EU migrants, non-employment contributes more strongly to poverty differences. Gender differences are particularly pronounced in partnerships between non-EU migrants and either non-migrants or individuals of migrant descent.
Conclusion: We underscore the importance of considering gendered partnership constellations beyond the migrant/non-migrant dichotomy in poverty research. Furthermore, we highlight the need to account for multiple dimensions of homogamy to better understand the link between partnership constellations and poverty.
References
Aleksynska, M., & Tritah, A. (2013). Occupation–education mismatch of immigrant workers in Europe: Context and policies. Economics of Education Review, 36, 229–244. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econedurev.2013.06.001
Boehle, M. (2015). Armutsmessung mit dem Mikrozensus: Methodische Aspekte und Umsetzung für Querschnitts- und Trendanalysen. GESIS Papers, 16.
Boockmann, B., & Steiner, V. (2006). Cohort effects and the returns to education in West Germany. Applied Economics, 38(10), 1135–1152. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00036840500439168
Braack, M. K., & Milewski, N. (2020). An explorative approach to the cross-section of international migration and sexual preference: Same-sex couples in Germany. Genus, 76(1), 33. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s41118-020-00102-6
Braack, M. K., Milewski, N., & Trappe, H. (2022). Crossing Social Boundaries in an Immigration Context: Exogamy and Gendered Employment Patterns in Unions in Germany. Gender Issues, 39(2), 142–176. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12147-021-09281-8
Brady, D. J., Finnigan, R., & Hübgen, S. (2017). Rethinking the risks of poverty: A framework for analyzing prevalences and penalties. American Journal of Sociology, 123(3), 740–786. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/693678
Breen, R., & Andersen, S. H. (2012). Educational Assortative Mating and Income Inequality in Denmark. Demography, 49(3), 867–887. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-012-0111-2
Breen, R., & Salazar, L. (2011). Educational Assortative Mating and Earnings Inequality in the United States. American Journal of Sociology, 117(3), 808–843. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/661778
Brücker, H., Hauptmann, A., & Keita, S. (2025). Zuwanderungsmonitor Dezember 2024. Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung der Bundesagentur für Arbeit.
Brülle, J. (2016). Demographic Trends and the Changing Ability of Households to Buffer Poverty Risks in Germany. European Sociological Review, 32(6), 766–778. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcw033
Brülle, J., & Gangl, M. (2023). Verfestigung von Armut und die zunehmende Bedeutung von Pfadabhängigkeiten im Lebenslauf. KZfSS Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie, 75(1), 1–35. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11577-023-00879-2
Brülle, J., Gangl, M., Levanon, A., & Saburov, E. (2019). Changing labour market risks in the service economy: Low wages, part-time employment and the trend in working poverty risks in Germany. Journal of European Social Policy, 29(1), 115–129. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0958928718779482
Carol, S., & Teney, C. (2015). Attitudes Towards Intergroup Dating Among Brussels Adolescents: The interaction of gender and ethnicity and its determinants. European Societies, 17(2), 132–157. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14616696.2014.977322
Çelikaksoy, A., Nekby, L., & Rashid, S. (2010). Assortative mating by ethnic background and education among individuals with an immigrant background in Sweden. Journal of Family Research, 22(1), 65–88. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20377/jfr-291
Charsley, K., & Bolognani, M. (2023). Marrying ‘in’/marrying ‘out’? Blurred boundaries in British Pakistani marriage choices. In Cross-Border Marriages. Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003372400-3
Chow, S. (2000). The Significance of Race in the Private Sphere: Asian Americans and Spousal Preferences. Sociological Inquiry, 70(1), 1–29. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-682X.2000.tb00893.x
Dahinden, J., Fischer, C., & Menet, J. (2021). Knowledge production, reflexivity, and the use of categories in migration studies: Tackling challenges in the field. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 44(4), 535–554. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2020.1752926
de Haas, H., Czaika, M., Flahaux, M.-L., Mahendra, E., Natter, K., Vezzoli, S., & Villares-Varela, M. (2019). International Migration: Trends, Determinants, and Policy Effects. Population and Development Review, 45(4), 885–922. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/padr.12291
de Valk, H. A. G., & Medrano, J. D. (2014). Guest Editorial on Meeting and Mating Across Borders: Union Formation in the European Union Single Market. Population, Space and Place, 20(2), 103–109. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.1768
Destatis. (2021). Gender Pay Gap 2020: Frauen verdienten 18 % weniger als Männer. Statistisches Bundesamt.
Destatis. (2022). Erwerbstätigenquoten 1991 bis 2022. Statistisches Bundesamt.
DiPrete, T. A., & McManus, P. A. (2000). Family Change, Employment Transitions, and the Welfare State: Household Income Dynamics in the United States and Germany. American Sociological Review, 65(3), 343. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2657461
Ellermann, A. (2020). Discrimination in migration and citizenship. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 46(12), 2463–2479. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2018.1561053
Elwert, A. (2020). Opposites Attract: Assortative Mating and Immigrant–Native Intermarriage in Contemporary Sweden. European Journal of Population, 36(4), 675–709. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-019-09546-9
Esteve, A., Elwert, A., & Batyra, E. (2023). Gender Asymmetries in Cross‐National Couples. Population and Development Review, 49(2), 379–396. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/padr.12565
Eurostat. (2025a). EU population diversity by citizenship and country of birth.
Eurostat. (2025b). Gender pay gap statistics.
Federal Office for Migration and Refugees. (2023). Migrationsbericht der Bundesregierung 2022 Kurzfassung.
Federal Statistical Office. (2025). 17.3% of Germany’s population has immigrated since 1950. Federal Statistical Office.
Felbo-Kolding, J., Leschke, J., & F. Spreckelsen, T. (2019). A division of labour? Labour market segmentation by region of origin: the case of intra-EU migrants in the UK, Germany and Denmark. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 45(15), 2820–2843. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2018.1518709
Fernández-Reino, M., Di Stasio, V., & Veit, S. (2022). Discrimination Unveiled: A Field Experiment on the Barriers Faced by Muslim Women in Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain. European Sociological Review, jcac032. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcac032
Filandri, M., & Struffolino, E. (2019). Individual and household in-work poverty in Europe: Understanding the role of labor market characteristics. European Societies, 21(1), 130–157. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14616696.2018.1536800
Fleischmann, F., & Höhne, J. (2013). Gender and migration on the labour market: Additive or interacting disadvantages in Germany? Social Science Research, 42(5), 1325–1345. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2013.05.006
Friedberg, R. M. (2000). You Can’t Take It with You? Immigrant Assimilation and the Portability of Human Capital. Journal of Labor Economics, 18(2), 31. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/209957
Giesecke, J., Kroh, M., Tucci, I., Baumann, A.-L., & El-Kayed, N. (2017). Armutsgefährdung bei Personen mit Migrationshintergrund: Vertiefende Analysen auf Basis von SOEP und Mikrozensus (No. 907). Deutsches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung (DIW), Berlin.
González-Ferrer, A. (2006). Who Do Immigrants Marry? Partner Choice Among Single Immigrants in Germany. European Sociological Review, 22(2), 171–185. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jci050
González-Ferrer, A., Obućina, O., Cortina, C., & Castro-Martín, T. (2018). Mixed marriages between immigrants and natives in Spain: The gendered effect of marriage market constraints. Demographic Research, 39, 1–32. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4054/DemRes.2018.39.1
Grotti, R., & Scherer, S. (2014). Accumulation of Employment Instability Among Partners—Evidence from Six EU Countries. European Sociological Review, 30(5), 627–639. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcu063
Guetto, R., & Azzolini, D. (2015). An Empirical Study of Status Exchange through Migrant/Native Marriages in Italy. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 41(13), 2149–2172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2015.1037725
Hannemann, T., Kulu, H., Rahnu, L., Puur, A., Hărăguş, M., Obućina, O., González-Ferrer, A., Neels, K., Van Den Berg, L., Pailhé, A., Potarca, G., & Bernardi, L. (2018). Co-ethnic marriage versus intermarriage among immigrants and their descendants: A comparison across seven European countries using event-history analysis. Demographic Research, 39, 487–524. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4054/DemRes.2018.39.17
Haug, S. (2010). Interethnische Kontakte, Freundschaften, Partnerschaften und Ehen von Migranten in Deutschland: Integrationsreport, T. 7 (Vol. 33). Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge (BAMF) Forschungszentrum Migration, Integration und Asyl (FZ).
Haustein, T., Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin für Sozialforschung, Bundesinstitut für Bevölkerungsforschung, & Statistisches Bundesamt (Hrsg.). (2024). Sozialbericht 2024: Ein Datenreport für Deutschland. bpb.
Hochgürtel, T. (2019). Einkommensanalysen mit dem Mikrozensus. In WISTA 3/2019 Wirtschaft und Statistik (Vol. 03, p. 53–64).
Huschek, D., de Valk, H. A. G., & Liefbroer, A. C. (2012). Partner Choice Patterns Among the Descendants of Turkish Immigrants in Europe. European Journal of Population / Revue Européenne de Démographie, 28(3), 241–268. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10680-012-9265-2
Jere, N., Johansson, A., Strandell, H., Sušilović, D., Alaminos Aguilera, E., Albano, A., Geske, S., & European Commission (Hrsg.). (2023). Key figures on European living conditions: 2023 edition. Publications Office.
Kaas, L., & Manger, C. (2012). Ethnic Discrimination in Germany’s Labour Market: A Field Experiment. German Economic Review, 13(1), 1–20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0475.2011.00538.x
Kalmijn, M. (1998). Intermarriage and Homogamy: Causes, Patterns, Trends. Annual Review of Sociology, 24(1), 395–421. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.24.1.395
Kanas, A., & Müller, K. (2021). Immigrant Women’s Economic Outcomes in Europe: The Importance of Religion and Traditional Gender Roles. International Migration Review, 55(4), 1231–1264. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/01979183211008867
Kesler, C. (2015). Welfare states and immigrant poverty: Germany, Sweden, and the United Kingdom in comparative perspective. Acta Sociologica, 58(1), 39–61. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0001699314560238
Khoudja, Y., & Fleischmann, F. (2015). Ethnic Differences in Female Labour Force Participation in the Netherlands: Adding Gender Role Attitudes and Religiosity to the Explanation. European Sociological Review, 31(1), 91–102. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/esr/jcu084
Klein, M. (2015). The increasing unemployment gap between the low and high educated in West Germany. Structural or cyclical crowding-out? Social Science Research, 50, 110–125. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2014.11.010
Kogan, I., Heyne, S., Kuhlemann, J., & Abdul-Rida, C. (2023). Distinct Boundaries? Preferences of Immigrants’ Descendants Regarding Partnerships with Recent Refugees from Syria and Afghanistan in Germany. Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, 52(4), 379–390. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/zfsoz-2023-2026
Leesch, J., Katrňák, T., & Skopek, J. (2024). Structural opportunities or assortative mating? – Decomposing trends and country differences in educational sorting outcomes in marriages. European Societies, 1–33. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14616696.2023.2290238
Lersch, P. M., & Schunck, R. (2023). Assortative Mating and Wealth Inequalities Between and Within Households. Social Forces, 102(2), 454–474. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soad064
Medrano, J. D. (2020). Europe in Love: Binational Couples and Cosmopolitan Society (1. Aufl.). Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003036951-1
Merton, R. K. (1941). Intermarriage and the Social Structure: Fact and Theory †. Psychiatry, 4(3), 361–374. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00332747.1941.11022354
Mize, T. D., Doan, L., & Long, J. S. (2019). A General Framework for Comparing Predictions and Marginal Effects across Models. Sociological Methodology, 49(1), 152–189. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0081175019852763
Obućina, O. (2014). Paths into and out of poverty among immigrants in Sweden. Acta Sociologica, 57(1), 5–23. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0001699313495055
Polavieja, J. G. (2015). Capturing Culture: A New Method to Estimate Exogenous Cultural Effects Using Migrant Populations. American Sociological Review, 80(1), 166–191. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122414562600
Polizzi, A., Struffolino, E., & Van Winkle, Z. (2022). Family demographic processes and in-work poverty: A systematic review. Advances in Life Course Research, 52, 100462. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcr.2022.100462
RDC of the Federal Statistical Office and Statistical Offices of the Federal States of Germany. (2022). Mikrozensus 2019, SUF, Version 0 (Version 0) [Dataset]. RDC of the Federal Statistical Office and the statistical offices of the Länder (RDC).
Rodríguez-García, D. (2015). Intermarriage and Integration Revisited: International Experiences and Cross-Disciplinary Approaches. The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 662(1), 8–36. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716215601397
Rubin, J., Rendall, M. S., Rabinovich, L., Tsang, F., van Oranje-Nassau, C., & Janta, B. (2008). Migrant women in the European labour force: Current situation and future prospects. European Commission, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities.
Salikutluk, Z., & Menke, K. (2021). Gendered integration? How recently arrived male and female refugees fare on the German labour market. Journal of Family Research, 33(2), 284–321. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20377/jfr-474
Schroedter, J. H. (2013). Ehemuster von Migranten in Westdeutschland. Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-00627-3
Schroedter, J. H., & Kalter, F. (2008). Binationale Ehen in Deutschland. Trends und Mechanismen der sozialen Assimilation. In Migration und Integration (p. 351–379).
Schwartz, C. R. (2013). Trends and Variation in Assortative Mating: Causes and Consequences. Annual Review of Sociology, 39(1), 451–470. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-soc-071312-145544
Song, M. (2009). Is Intermarriage a Good Indicator of Integration? Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 35(2), 331–348. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13691830802586476
Sprengholz, M., Diehl, C., Giesecke, J., & Kreyenfeld, M. (2021). From „guest workers“ to EU migrants: A gendered view on the labour market integration of different arrival cohorts in Germany. Journal of Family Research, 33(2), 252–283. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20377/jfr-492
Sprengholz, M., & Hamjediers, M. (2022). Intersections and Commonalities: Using Matching to Decompose Wage Gaps by Gender and Nativity in Germany. Work and Occupations, 073088842211411. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/07308884221141100
Stauder, J., & Hüning, W. (2004). Die Messung von Äquivalenzeinkommen und Armutsquoten auf der Basis des Mikrozensus. Statistische Analysen und Studien {NRW}, 13(2004), 9–31.
Thijssen, L., Lancee, B., Veit, S., & Yemane, R. (2021). Discrimination against Turkish minorities in Germany and the Netherlands: Field experimental evidence on the effect of diagnostic information on labour market outcomes. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(6), 1222–1239. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2019.1622793
Van Mol, C., De Valk, H. A., & Van Wissen, L. (2015). Falling in love with(in) Europe: European bi-national love relationships, European identification and transnational solidarity. European Union Politics, 16(4), 469–489. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1465116515588621
Vries, L. D., Fischer, M., Kasprowski, D., Kroh, M., Kühne, S., Richter, D., & Zindel, Z. (2020). LGBTQI*-Menschen am Arbeitsmarkt: Hoch gebildet und oftmals diskriminiert. DIW Wochenbericht, 87, p. 619-627.
Weichselbaumer, D. (2016). Discrimination Against Female Migrants Wearing Headscarves (SSRN Scholarly Paper No. 2842960). DOI: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2842960
Downloads
Additional Files
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Funding data
-
Bundesministerium für Arbeit und Soziales
Grant numbers MPR.00.00017.20 – FIS-Corona
