ABSTRACT
In recent decades in India, marital behavior and dynamics and composition of families have undergone changes. One such change has been the decline of arranged marriages and the complementary rise in ‘love marriages’ or, more accurately, self-choice marriages. In India, marriage practices vary by region, religion and caste, and parent-arranged marriages are customary in many parts of the country. While many studies suggest that the institution of arranged marriage may be on the decline, in the absence of nationally representative surveys on this theme, it is difficult to evaluate the extent of this decline. By using data from a nationwide survey, this chapter examines Indian youth’s (aged 15–34 years) attitudes and preferences on marriage and related behaviors. The findings suggest that parent-arranged marriages are still the norm with 84 percent of married youth describing their marriage as such and only 6 percent reporting self-choice marriages. The findings also reveal that while acceptance of inter-caste marriages has increased, their reported outcome remains low at 4 percent.
