Till depression do us part? Examining the prospective associations between depression and marital adjustment in older adults

Abstract

IntroductionThe association between marital adjustment and depression in young couples is well established. However, little is known about the longitudinal associations between marital adjustment and depression in older adults. ObjectiveTo explore if such associations are significant in older adults and determine their direction of effects. MethodThe cross-sectional and 12-month prospective associations between diagnostic depression and marital adjustment in a representative sample of community-dwelling older adults (age≥65years, n=847) from Quebec, Canada, were assessed through cross-lagged, multiple regression analyses. ResultsData suggest a cross-sectional association between marital adjustment and depression. As for longitudinal associations, marital adjustment predicted subsequent diagnostic depression but there was no support for the inverse path, suggesting a unidirectional relation between these variables. ConclusionWhile significant, the association between initial marital adjustment and later depression was weak. Based on our and previously reported findings, the importance of the prospective relations between marital quality and depression in older adults is discussed.