MARITAL DISSOLUTION AND DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN MIDDLE AND LATE LIFE: AN ANALYSIS OF THE HEALTH AND RETIREMENT STUDY

Abstract

Abstract Literature to date has long indicated that marital relationships serve as one of the most important sources of health and well-being across adulthood. Despite the well-documented link between marital status and health, however, studies that have examined strict within-person linkages between martial transitions and subsequent health are limited . Drawing from the strength and vulnerability integration theory and the life course perspective, we investigated within-person mental health consequences of two forms of marital dissolution (i.e., divorce and widowhood), and whether the mental health consequences vary depending on the timing of marital dissolution (i.e., midlife vs late adulthood). Data for this study came from 11 waves of longitudinal data from the Health and Retirement Study (1998-2018). Study sample included 22,911 individuals 50 and older (11,429 women, 11,482 men) who were selected at the first wave at which they were identified as married during the observation period and subsequently followed up for up to 14 years (person-wave observations N=127,081). Approximately 4% and 17% of the study sample experienced a divorce and widowhood, respectively, during the observation. Mental health was assessed with an 8-item version of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale. Study findings based on multilevel models indicated a robust within-person association between transition to widowhood and higher levels of depressive symptoms, but such association was not found regarding divorce. For women only, the mental health consequences of widowhood experienced during midlife were more detrimental compared to late-life widowhood. The findings are discussed in the context of intervention strategies.