Marital Status Transitions Research Articles

Role of hospitalisation for substance misuse in marital status transitions: a 47-year follow-up of a Swedish birth cohort

BackgroundSubstantial research suggests that the risk of substance misuse is higher among individuals who remain unmarried or experience marital dissolution, whereas marriage tends to be protective. However, few studies have...

MARITAL BIOGRAPHY AND ACCELERATED AGING: EVIDENCE FROM THE HEALTH AND RETIREMENT STUDY

Abstract It is well-established that marriage promotes health and longevity. While a large body of research has examined marital status differences in health, no studies have focused on how marital status is linked to biological age. Moreover, the association between marital biography – transitions in and out of marriage across the life course – and biological aging also remains to be explored. Biological age, which refers to the “physiological functioning relative to the average physiological state at a specific chronological age,” has been steadily gaining attention as a measure indicative of an individual’s health status. In this study, we advance the literature on marital status and health by examining how marital status and marital transitions are associated with biological aging among a representative sample of U.S. older adults. We use an expanded measure of biological age that incorporates 22 biological indicators, more than half of which were not used in previous studies, to better assess how marital experiences shape accelerated aging. Using data from the 2016 Health and Retirement Study, we find that the pace of aging of those who have experienced one disruption is not statistically different from those continuously married. However, for both currently and previously married individuals, the experience of multiple marital disruptions is associated with accelerated aging. Health behaviors account for the association between multiple marital disruptions and accelerated aging for previously married older adults but not for currently married older adults. Psychosocial resources did not mediate the influence of marital biography on accelerated aging.

Marital Status, Marital Transitions, and Sleep Quality in Mid to Late Life

Sleep is an important behavior in the prevention and management of chronic conditions in later life. Marital status may account for variability in sleep quality, but little is known about this association in the later part of life or how transitions into and out of marriage are related to changes in sleep quality. This study used the resource model and crisis model as frameworks to understand how marital status and marital transitions were related to sleep quality in mid to late life and whether these findings differed by gender. Interview data from 2,872 participants 50-74 years old (M=59.77 years; 63.7% women) from the ORANJ BOWL, a longitudinal panel study in New Jersey, were used. Marital status and sleep quality were examined in two waves approximately 10 years apart. All analyses controlled for health and sociodemographic characteristics. Weighted regressions revealed that individuals in committed romantic relationships and women had worse sleep quality than those in other marital status groups and men (p<.005). Weighted fixed effects regressions revealed that compared to individuals who remained married, individuals who remained divorced or widowed or who became widowed had better sleep quality, whereas those who became divorced had worse sleep quality (ps<.05); individuals who transitioned into marriage had better sleep quality than those who remained divorced or widowed (ps<.03). Findings differed depending on the index of sleep quality examined. Efforts to understand which middle-aged and older adults are most vulnerable to sleep disturbances can inform the design of interventions to promote better sleep quality.

Marital Transitions, Change in Depressive Symptomology, and Quality of Social Relationships in Midlife and Older U.S. Adults: An Analysis of the Health and Retirement Study.

Preventing negative health outcomes following marital transitions can promote personal recovery and well-being. We used the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) (2012, 2014) to test whether social relationship quality moderated the association between marital transition and change in depressive symptomology among U.S. adults aged 50 and older (n = 3,705). Marital status transitions between 2012 and 2014 included remained married/partnered, divorced/separated, and widowed. Depressive symptomology was measured using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale 8 Short Form (CES-D 8). Social support, social contact, and social strain were indicators of social relationship quality. Change in depressive symptomology was modeled using autoregressive multiple regression. Social relationship quality appeared to influence depressive symptomatology for those experiencing divorce/separation. Compared to individuals who remained married/partnered, depressive symptomatology in those experiencing separation/divorce decreased among those reporting low social support, increased among those reporting high social support, and increased among those who reported low social strain. Limitations and clinical implications are discussed.

Marital Status, Marital Transitions, and Sleep Quality in Mid to Late Life

This study aimed to understand how marital status and marital transitions were related to sleep quality in mid to late life and whether these findings differed by gender. Data from 2,872 participants 50-74 years old from the ORANJ BOWLSM, a longitudinal panel study in New Jersey, were used. Marital status and sleep quality were examined in two waves that were approximately 10 years apart. Individuals in a significant romantic relationship and women had worse sleep quality than those in other marital status groups and men. Compared to individuals who remained married, individuals who remained divorced or widowed or who became widowed had better sleep quality, whereas those who became divorced had worse sleep quality; individuals who transitioned into marriage had better sleep quality than those who remained divorced or widowed. Marital status and gender appear important for at least some indices of sleep quality, an important predictor of late-life health.

For better or for worse: Marital status transitions and sexual life in middle and later life

Marital status and marital status transitions have known implications for adults’ mental and physical quality of life. Less attention has been paid, however, to the implications of marital status and transitions for sexual quality of life, particularly among the aging population. The present study analyzed three-wave longitudinal data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the U.S. (1995–2014) in order to examine the effects of marital status/transitions on adults’ frequency of sexual activity, sexual satisfaction, effort put into sexual life, and control over sexual life. Further, this study assessed whether the implications of marital status/transitions for adults’ sexual quality of life varied according to (a) pre-transition reports of sexual quality of life, (b) gender, and/or (c) age. Multilevel lagged dependent variable models analyzed 2,869 observations drawn from 1,769 midlife and older adults over a two-decade span. Results indicated that the implications of marital status and marital status transitions for sexual life (a) were contingent upon baseline context across all four sexual quality of life outcomes, (b) varied by gender across three of the four sexual quality of life outcomes, and (c) varied only slightly by age concerning frequency of sexual activity. Overall, findings indicated that marital status transitions may be either beneficial or detrimental for adults’ sexual lives, depending on prior context; marital status transitions were most beneficial for sexual quality of life when baseline reports of sexual life were poor. Moreover, women were less likely to reap the potential rewards of marital status transitions such as divorce and widowhood, reflecting stronger social and normative constraints upon unmarried women’s sexuality, particularly for older women. We situate these findings within the growing literature concerning marital status transitions, the “graying of divorce,” and sexual life among the aging population.

INTERNET USE AND SOCIAL ISOLATION: THE SIGNIFICANCE OF LIFE TRANSITIONS

Social isolation has emerged as a significant public health risk for older people, and can be triggered by a number of life transitions in old age, such as retirement, bereavement, and divorce. Using the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the current study aims to examine how internet use is associated with significant life transitions in marital and employment status in a longitudinal analysis. Results showed that using the internet was associated with lower social isolation and depression for people who became separated or divorced, but no significant interaction was observed for people who became widowed. On the other hand, becoming unemployed and using the internet was associated with more depressive symptoms. The results indicate that the link between psychological well-being and use of internet differs depending on the context of life transitions and may not have universal benefits for reducing social isolation.

Transition out of Marriage and its Effects on Health and Health\u2013Related Quality of Life among Females and Males. COURAGE and COURAGE-POLFUS\u2013Population Based Follow-Up Study in Poland

The study explores short-term effects of dissolution of union through divorce/separation and widowhood on physical and mental health as well as health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among females and males in Poland. Considering social selection and social causation theories, the study poses following research questions: are there differences in physical and mental health as well as health-related quality of life that are caused by a marital transition compared to remaining married/cohabiting? Do marital status transitions have different effects concerning physical and mental health and health-related quality of life among females and males? Data for the analysis were available for 1073 people (18+) who participate in the COURAGE-Poland population-based study from 2011 (baseline) and 2015–2016 COURAGE-POLFUS (follow-up). Health status was measured by the WHODAS II and the presence of depression based on the Composite International Diagnostic Interview. Health-related quality of life was assessed by WHOQOL-AGE scale. The analysis has been conducted using the analysis of variance, multinomial logistic regression and generalized liner mixed model according to the dependent variable. Results do suggest that transition out of marriage weakens mental health although the differences in physical health seemed to not be significant compared to the continuously married/cohabiting. The marital dissolution especially causes a decline in the mental health as well as health-related quality of life of males who transitioned to a widowed life. There has not been observed statistically significant change in terms of healthrelated quality of life between first and second wave of the survey among both widowed and divorced males and females.

Marital Status Transitions and Self-Reported Health among Canadians: A Life Course Perspective

This study focuses on the relationship between marital status transitions (the formation and dissolution of unions) and the self-reported health of adults in Canada. Empirical research has found that those in intimate unions generally enjoy better mental and physical health than the unattached and the dissolution of a union causes distress both for men and for women. Much remains to be understood about the effects of marital status transitions on health, especially from a life course perspective. This study poses the following research questions: do the number of marital status transitions and the kind of marital status transitions (from single to cohabitant; from single to married; from cohabitant to married and from married to divorce) affect health over time? Does difference between genders exist in this relationship? Data come from the nine cycles of the Canadian National Population Health Survey (1994–2011) and random-intercept logistic regression models are estimated to address these questions. Results do suggest that marital status transitions play a crucial role in determining health over time. Controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, marriage and cohabitation are associated with better physical and mental health, and depression symptoms are clearly stronger in cases of the dissolution of unions. Differences between genders are also evident.

Marital transitions and associated changes in fruit and vegetable intake: Findings from the population-based prospective EPIC-Norfolk cohort, UK

BackgroundDiet is critical to health and social relationships are an important determinant of diet. We report the association between transitions in marital status and healthy eating behaviours in a UK population. MethodsLongitudinal study of middle-age and older adults 39−78y (n = 11 577) in EPIC-Norfolk, a population-based cohort, who completed food frequency questionnaires in 1993–97 and 1998–2002. Multivariable linear regression analyses assessed gender-specific associations between five categories of marital transitions and changes in quantity (g/d), and variety (no/month) of fruits or vegetables. ResultsIn 3.6 years of follow-up and relative to men who stayed married, widowed men showed significant declines (mean difference, 95% CI) in all four indicators of healthy eating including fruit quantity (−47.7, −80.6 to −14.9 g/d), fruit variety (−0.6, −1.1 to −0.2 no/month), vegetable quantity (−27.7, −50.5 to −4.9 g/d), and vegetable variety (−1.6, −2.2 to −0.9 no/month). Men who were separated or divorced or who remained single also showed significant declines in three of the indicators. Among women, only those who became separated/divorced or stayed single showed declines in one indicator, vegetable variety. ConclusionUnhealthy changes to diet accompanying divorce, separation and becoming widowed may be more common among men than women. Moreover, deterioration in fruit and vegetable intakes was more apparent for variety rather than quantity consumed. Programmes to promote healthy eating among older adults need to recognise these social determinants of diet and consider prioritising people who live alone and in particular men who have recently left relationships or who have been widowed.

Time on housework and selection into and out of relationships in Australia: a multiprocess, multilevel approach

In this paper we investigate the impact of relationship transitions on domestic labour time using longitudinal data from eight waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey. Although there is a growing body of literature on this topic, previous research has failed to adequately address selection issues relating to transitions in marital status and time on housework. A simultaneous-­‐equations model is used to jointly examine the relationships between time on housework and marital status transitions to allow for correlation between unobserved partner and person characteristics that impact on each process. Our results show that women who transitioned from being single into marriage spend more time on housework than women who transitioned from single to cohabiting. Additionally, we find that women who spend more time on housework when single also spend more time on housework after cohabitation or marriage. But there is no evidence of selection of these women into marriage rather than cohabitation. We also found no evidence to support the hypothesis that women who do varying amounts of housework are more likely to select out of relationships. Overall we conclude that the unobserved factors influencing time spent on housework are not related to the unobserved factors influencing relationship transitions.

Loan Modifications and Foreclosure Sales during the Financial Crisis: Consequences for Health and Stress

Loan modifications and foreclosure sales are two ways mortgage servicers can respond when homeowners fall behind on house payments. We investigate the consequences of these events for health and stress by linking longitudinal survey data with administrative mortgage performance data that identify those survey participants who experienced a foreclosure sale, a loan modification, or neither. We find that between 2008 and 2013, loan modifications and foreclosure sales were both associated with a reduction in the stress of house payments, while foreclosure sales alone were associated with a reduction in the stress of home maintenance. Beyond these property-related stressors, the changes in survey participants' self-reported sense-of-control and mental, physical, and general health are most associated with transitions in employment, income, marital status, and residential quality rather than with loan modifications or foreclosure sales. These findings run counter to prevailing research, yet they inform the debate over how to address problems that arise when homeowners become delinquent on mortgages.

Who needs a friend? Marital status transitions and physical health outcomes in later life.

This study assessed the moderating role of 2 types of confidante relationships in mitigating the negative health impact of transitions involving spousal loss in late life (widowhood and divorce/separation). The sample included 707 respondents who participated in the 1992 and 2004 waves of the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS, 2007) all of whom were married at Time 1 and by Time 2 experienced either an end of the marriage resulting from widowhood or divorce/separation or remained continuously married to the same spouse. The majority of the sample was female (n = 457) and 64.3 years old on average. Three indicators of physical health were examined, including somatic depressive symptomatology, self-rated health, and number of sick days in the preceding year. Moderated regression analyses showed that the availability of a friend as confidante at Time 2 played a significant moderating role in the link between marital transitions and health outcomes, buffering the health impact of widowhood. Specifically, among those who became widowed between the 2 waves, those who had available a friend as confidante at Time 2 reported significantly lower somatic depressive symptoms, better self-rated health, and fewer sick days in bed during the preceding year than those who reported not having a friend as confidante. No support was obtained for the moderating role of having a family member as confidante at Time 2 in the link from marital transitions to health. These results highlight the need to develop means to maintain and enhance confiding friendships among widowed older adults.

Holistic housing pathways for Australian families through the childbearing years

For the previous generation, the typical housing tenure pathway in Australia was more clearly defined, with young adults leaving the family home to marry and experience the birth of the first child while residing in a rental home, before entry into home ownership. For the first time in Australia, longitudinal data is available that allows the examination of housing tenure transitions along with other life events, in particular the birth of children, marital transitions and changes in employment. Sequences of tenure transitions and life events were derived for a large sample of individuals using ten waves of data (2001-2010) from the longitudinal Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, with a focus on families with children or of childbearing age. The statistical method of multi-channel sequence analysis was used to identify a typology of housing pathways from these data sequences. Half of all individuals in the sample do not experience any transitions in housing tenure status during the period of the survey and these people record notably fewer transitions in marital status. The main typologies identified were related to transitioning into home ownership, with the birth of a child occurring either before or after the transition. Previously, some individuals also entered home ownership before the birth of their first child rather than after, but it was not acknowledged as a major housing pathway as it is now. In this study, the majority of housing tenure and life event sequences showed that individuals were already married by the time of transitioning into home ownership. Pathways are now more diverse with transitions into home ownership often occurring both before and after the birth of a child, with marriage preceding the decision to buy a home.

혼인상태별 사망률의 차이를 반영한 생명보험수리 모형의 설계

현재까지 인간 수명에 영향을 미치는 요소와 해당 요소가 수명에 미치는 영향을 계량적으로 분석하는 연구들이 지속적으로 이루어져 왔고, 그 결과 성별과 연령 이외의 많은 요소들이 실제로 수명에 유의한 영향을 미치는 요인으로 나타났다. 혼인상태는 그러한 요인들 중 하나로, 직접 또는 간접적으로 생존자의 여명에 영향을 끼치는 것으로 인지되고 있다. 이러한 결과는 공적보험과 같은 사회복지 제도와 사보험 영역의 생명보험과 개인연금의 위험관리에 시사점을 제공해 준다. 본 연구에서는 국내의 혼인상태별 사망률 자료를 이용하여 혼인상태의 변화를 반영한 사망률 모형을 설계하고 혼인상태가 보험수리적 계산에 미치는 영향을 파악하고, 그 결과가 나타내는 시사점에 대하여 논의하였다. Various risk factors other than age and sex affecting human mortality have been identified and quantitatively analyzed by previous studies in many area of research. Marital status is one of key mortality risk factors which affect life expectancy directly or indirectly. Relevant results have implication on risk management for both of social and private insurance. In this paper, a mortality model to reflect mortality differential according to marital status and possible transitions among marital status is designed. Various actuarial calculations were performed and related issues were discussed.

The effects of marital status transitions on alcohol use trajectories

This study aims to exploit the longitudinal nature of the US Health and Retirement Study (HRS), using a semi-parametric mixture modeling (SPMM) approach to examine whether the presence of marital transitions has an impact on alcohol use trajectories among the elderly. The empirical work of this study is based on the 1994-2008 Health and Retirement Study (HRS). Findings provide support to the marriage protection effect: for both elderly men and women, remaining divorced or widowed had detrimental effects on alcohol consumption. Findings also concur with the potential roles of assortive mating / marital homophily: having a drinking spouse increased alcohol consumption.

The enduring effects of marital status on subsequent depressive symptoms among women: investigating the roles of psychological, social and financial resources

ObjectivesTo investigate the mechanisms through which marital status exerts long-term effects on depressive symptoms among women and to evaluate the relative importance of psychological, social and financial resources in mediating...

Transitions in Marital Status and Functional Health and Patterns of Intergenerational Coresidence Among China's Elderly Population

Transitions from marriage to widowhood are consequential and fraught with risk in developing country contexts. We investigate whether transitions to widowhood, as well as transitions to worsened functional health, predict transition into coresidential living arrangements with children in a rapidly aging China. We also inquire whether coresidence transitions vary by older adults' gender and the presence of grandchildren in skip generation households. Longitudinal prospective analyses of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Surveys (1998-2005) assess whether transition to widowhood and transition to relatively poor functional health influence elderly coresidence with children. Several logistic regression models are estimated using robust standard error estimation to address data clustering at the person level. When coresidence shifts occur, they are shaped by the needs of older adults. Specifically, a significant rise in coresidential living follows widowhood as well as deterioration in functional health. Among older adults coresiding with grandchildren, shifts to coresidence with own children following widowhood and worsened functional health are attenuated, suggesting that skip generation households may be supportive arrangements for older adults. Results are interpreted in light of the adaptability of living arrangements, novel forms such as skip generation households, and intergenerational support for China's elderly population.

Marital Status, Marital Transitions, Well-Being, and Spinal Cord Injury: An Examination of the Effects of Sex and Time

Kalpakjian CZ, Houlihan B, Meade MA, Karana-Zebari D, Heinemann AW, Dijkers MP, Wierbicky J, Charlifue S. Marital status, marital transitions, well-being, and spinal cord injury: an examination of the effects of sex and time. Objective To examine the applicability of marital resource (marriage has substantial benefits for well-being over not being married) or marital crisis (marital dissolution leads to poorer well-being) models to the spinal cord injury (SCI) population by studying the effects of sex, marital status, and marital transitions on well-being. Design Prospective cohort study from the SCI Model Systems National Database. Setting Community. Participants Men (n=4864) and women (n=1277) who sustained traumatic SCI and completed a minimum of 1 follow-up interview beginning at 1 year through 15 years postinjury. Interventions None. Main Outcomes Measures Life satisfaction, depressive symptoms, and self-perceived health status by using linear mixed models for longitudinal data. Results In general, well-being improved over time since injury. Hypothesis testing supported the marital crisis model, as marital loss through being or becoming separated or divorced and being or becoming widowed, had the most consistent and negative impact across well-being outcomes, whereas being or becoming married had an advantage for only lower depression symptoms over time. However, marital dissolution or loss did not have a uniformly adverse impact on well-being outcomes, and this effect often was moderated by sex, such that widows had higher depressive symptoms and poorer self-perceived health than widowers, but separated or divorced women had higher life satisfaction and self-perceived health than men. Irrespective of sex, being separated or divorced versus being single was associated with higher depressive symptoms over time. Conclusions Results support the marital crisis model and that women and men can experience marital dissolution differently. All marital loss does not result in compromised well-being and all marriage does not enhance well-being, highlighting complex dynamics worthy of further investigation in this population.

In Fitness and Health? A Prospective Study of Changes in Marital Status and Fitness in Men and Women

The authors examined the prospective associations between marital status transitions and changes in fitness in men and women. Between 1987 and 2005, a total of 8,871 adults (6,900 men) aged 45.6 (standard deviation, 9.1) years were examined at the Cooper Clinic, Dallas, Texas; the median follow-up was ∼3 years. Marital transition categories (from single to married, married to divorced, divorced to remarried) were derived from self-reported marital status at baseline and follow-up. Fitness (maximal oxygen consumption) was assessed by a maximal treadmill test. Analyses were adjusted for baseline levels and changes in body mass index, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and major chronic diseases. Compared with the corresponding "control" groups (remaining single, married, or divorced), transitioning from being single to married was associated with a reduction in fitness in women (P = 0.03); divorce was associated with an increase in fitness in men (P = 0.04); and remarriage was associated with a reduction in fitness in men (P = 0.05). The authors conclude that the transitions to being married (from single to married or from divorced to remarried) are associated with a modest reduction, while divorce is associated with a modest increase in fitness levels in men. Study results suggest that these patterns may be different in women, but further research is required to confirm this.