Abstract
This study investigates how individuals’ life satisfaction and depression are affected by the dissolution of a steady non-cohabiting intimate relationship. Previous studies have focused more on the consequences of divorce and less on the influence of non-cohabiting relationships on the well-being of the individual. The data for this study were taken from pairfam, a large-scale German panel survey, and were used to estimate fixed-effects panel regression models and impact functions to identify the overall effect of dissolution and trajectories after separation. The study sample comprised 2,631 individuals who were observed over the course of 11,219 partnership years. Based on the results of this study, three main findings were reported. First, the dissolution of a non-cohabiting relationship led to a significant decline in mental health and life satisfaction. Second, the trajectories after dissolution suggest that the decline was only temporary, showing readjustment after 1 year. Third, gender differences were identified, suggesting worse consequences for men who experienced a significant decline in both dimensions and did not readjust in life satisfaction until several years after the dissolution. For women, decreases were only found for life satisfaction, but quick readjustments were observed.
Highlights
The dissolution of an intimate relationship is one of the most stressful life-course events (Lorenz et al, 2006; Mather et al, 2014; Hald et al, 2020)
This study focuses on the dissolution of living apart together or non-cohabiting intimate relationships
This paper investigates how individuals’ life satisfaction and mental health are affected by the dissolution of a non-cohabiting relationship
Summary
The dissolution of an intimate relationship is one of the most stressful life-course events (Lorenz et al, 2006; Mather et al, 2014; Hald et al, 2020). The uncoupling process leads to numerous events within a relatively short period of time, making it a stressful experience Stressors, such as the loss of love, companionship, and social and emotional support, along with the new tasks of adjusting to living alone, informing families and friends, and possibly finding a new partner, increase the risk of negative outcomes in health and well-being (Amato, 2000; Leopold and Kalmijn, 2016; Tosi and van den Broek, 2020). Previous findings on divorce have provided evidence for the crisis model (Hetherington, 2003; Wade and Pevalin, 2004; Hughes and Waite, 2009; Leopold and Kalmijn, 2016; Kalmijn, 2017; Leopold, 2018), indicating that people experience a decline in life satisfaction and mental health immediately after the end of a relationship but adjust over the 2–3 years and return to their levels prior to the divorce. Research on gender differences in relation to the dissolution of non-cohabiting relationships is limited
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