scholarly journals Actor–Partner Effects of Childhood Disadvantage on Later Life Subjective Well-Being Among Individuals in Coresidential Unions

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
pp. 1275-1285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Lam

Abstract Objectives Prior research on cumulative disadvantage has primarily focused on individuals’ own childhood adversity for their later-life outcomes. Nevertheless, partner’s childhood disadvantage may also shape respondent’s later-life well-being. Methods Drawing on a household-level dataset, I examine respondent’s own childhood adversity as well as their partner’s childhood adversity (poor childhood health, parental divorce, or father’s long-term unemployment) on respondent’s subjective well-being, at aged 50 and older. Results Findings from the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) show poor childhood health of the male partner as associated with worse mental health and self-rated health of the female partner in later life. For both outcome measures, the partner effects were attenuated after adjusting for the female partner’s report of perceived social support. For self-rated health, adjusting for variation in the presence of a chronic illness and household income also attenuated the association. Discussion Partnered individuals are nested within a specific context, whereby stress and implications of early life disadvantage may be conceptualized at the couple-level. Future research that assesses how early life experiences of individuals may have implications for family members’ later-life well-being may be valuable.

2021 ◽  
pp. 089826432110486
Author(s):  
Laura Upenieks ◽  
Yingling Liu

Objectives: We integrate the life course perspective with the stress-process model to offer a framework for how childhood conditions moderate the relationship between marital support/strain and subjective well-being in older adulthood for men and women. Methods: Drawing on longitudinal data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), we use a series of lagged dependent-variable models and stratify the sample by gender. Results: Our results suggest that the benefits associated with greater marital support are stronger for those that did not live with both parents in childhood for men. Women raised in families that experienced financial hardship reported lower subjective well-being in the context of marital strain. Conclusion: Adverse experiences in childhood can be scarring or foster resilience related to well-being in the context of strained or supportive marriages.


2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 158-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgia Verropoulou ◽  
Eleni Serafetinidou ◽  
Cleon Tsimbos

AbstractThe aims of the present study are twofold: first, to examine the importance of socio-economic disadvantage, adverse experiences and poor health in childhood on later-life depression by sex and, second, to discern the direct and indirect effects of childhood circumstances using a decomposition technique. Data are derived from Waves 2 and 3 of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The methods involve use of logistic regression models and a decomposition approach. The findings indicate that childhood socio-economic status (SES) for both genders and cognitive function for men have only a significant direct effect, consistent with the critical period model. Childhood health for men and poor parental mental health for women are nearly fully mediated by adulthood and later-life circumstances, a fact in line with the pathway model. Poor childhood health, parental excessive alcohol consumption and cognitive function for women and adverse experiences for men have both significant direct and indirect effects, consistent with both models. Mediating factors include poor adulthood and later-life health, socio-economic adversity and stress; adulthood and later-life SES mediate early life health and adverse experiences more strongly for men, whereas stress seems to mediate early life adverse experiences to a greater extent among women. Intervening policies should address childhood adversity while considering the differential vulnerability of men and women.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Mai See Yang ◽  
Lien Quach ◽  
Lewina O. Lee ◽  
Avron Spiro ◽  
Jeffrey A. Burr

Author(s):  
Dongying Li ◽  
Tess Menotti ◽  
Yizhen Ding ◽  
Nancy M. Wells

Recently, an emerging body of literature has examined the relationships between early life nature exposure and mental health in later life; however, no critical synthesis yet exists regarding the extent and strength of these relationships. This study presents the first systematic review of studies in this growing area. Following the PRISMA framework, we searched six databases (i.e., Scopus, Web of Science, MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and CINAHL); conducted identification, screening, eligibility, and inclusion analyses; and identified a final set of 29 articles. The review set comprises primarily longitudinal studies, with several cross-sectional studies using retrospective measures of childhood nature exposure. The majority of included studies were published between 2016 and 2020 and conducted in Europe and North America. Five domains of mental health outcomes are associated with early-life nature exposure: incidence of mental disorders, psychiatric symptoms and emotions, conduct problems in children, cognitive function, and subjective well-being. The evidence lends support to an overall beneficial role of early nature exposure on mental health, although inconsistencies are reported. Taken together, the evidence does not suggest that exposure at any given life stage is more saliently associated with mental health outcomes than at others. We discuss the validity concerns and methodological remedies and offer directions for future research.


GeroPsych ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ljiljana Kaliterna Lipovčan ◽  
Tihana Brkljačić ◽  
Zvjezdana Prizmić Larsen ◽  
Andreja Brajša-Žganec ◽  
Renata Franc

Abstract. Research shows that engagement in leisure activities promotes well-being among older adults. The objective of the current study was to examine the relationship between subjective well-being (flourishing) and leisure activities (total number of different activities in the previous year) in a sample of older adults in Croatia, thereby considering the variables of sex, marital status, financial status, and self-perceived health. The differences in the examined variables between the groups of older adults who reported to be engaged in new activities with those who did not were also examined. The sample of N = 169 older adults aged 60 years and above was drawn from a convenience sample of adult internet users in Croatia. Participants reported their self-perceived health and the number of leisure activities they engaged in over the previous year as well as completing the Flourishing Scale. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that older adults who were engaged in more various leisure activities, who perceived better financial status, and who were married reported higher levels of flourishing. A comparison of the two groups of older adults with and without engagement in leisure activities showed that those engaged in at least one leisure activity were more likely to be women, reported higher levels of flourishing, and perceived their own financial status as better. This study indicated that engaging in leisure activities in later life might provide beneficial effects for the well-being of older adults.


2021 ◽  
pp. 0192513X2199413
Author(s):  
Yuko Hara

Research in Western countries has demonstrated that marriage is associated with improved well-being, and parenthood with decreased well-being, for both men and women. However, less is known about whether the associations are universal for both genders across countries. Using nine waves of panel data and fixed effects models, this study examines the relationship between changes in family roles and subjective well-being of men and women in the highly gendered social context of Japan. Well-being was assessed across two domains: self-rated health and mental health. The results broadly support the protective effect theory, which posits that marriage itself has a positive effect on well-being; however, no association was observed between becoming a wife and self-rated health. Contrary to what previous research predicts, only men’s self-rated health negatively responds to transition to parenthood. These findings highlight the importance of country context and gender differences in the significance of family obligations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Takashi Oshio ◽  
Hiromi Kimura ◽  
Toshimi Nishizaki ◽  
Takashi Omori

Abstract Background Area-level deprivation is well known to have an adverse impact on mortality, morbidity, or other specific health outcomes. This study examined how area-level deprivation may affect self-rated health (SRH) and life satisfaction (LS), an issue that is largely understudied. Methods We used individual-level data obtained from a nationwide population-based internet survey conducted between 2019 and 2020, as well as municipality-level data obtained from a Japanese government database (N = 12,461 living in 366 municipalities). We developed multilevel regression models to explain an individual’s SRH and LS scores using four alternative measures of municipality-level deprivation, controlling for individual-level deprivation and covariates. We also examined how health behavior and interactions with others mediated the impact of area-level deprivation on SRH and LS. Results Participants in highly deprived municipalities tended to report poorer SRH and lower LS. For example, when living in municipalities falling in the highest tertile of municipality-level deprivation as measured by the z-scoring method, SRH and LS scores worsened by a standard deviation of 0.05 (p < 0.05) when compared with those living in municipalities falling in the lowest tertile of deprivation. In addition, health behavior mediated between 17.6 and 33.1% of the impact of municipality-level deprivation on SRH and LS, depending on model specifications. Conclusion Results showed that area-level deprivation modestly decreased an individual’s general health conditions and subjective well-being, underscoring the need for public health policies to improve area-level socioeconomic conditions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S434-S434
Author(s):  
Konstantinos Mantantzis ◽  
Denis Gerstorf ◽  
Thomas M Hess

Abstract Research into peripheral physiology and its association with cognition, emotionality, and social/physical functioning has received considerable attention over the years. However, many of the underlying mechanisms are not well understood. In this symposium, we have compiled a set of four empirical projects that showcase current and future endeavors to address some of the long-standing questions about when, how, and why physiology shapes and is shaped by key psychosocial resources. Hawkley et al. make use of data from the NSHAP and HRS longitudinal studies to investigate whether social relationships such as number of friends predicts risk of diabetes among older adults. Wilson et al. use dyadic data from young and middle-aged couples to examine cardiometabolic similarity among spouses, and how such concordance is shaped by key relationship factors such as emotional closeness. Pauly et al. use data from two daily-life studies of older couples to investigate how physiological synchrony in cortisol is modulated by partner interactions, empathy, and empathic accuracy. Finally, Mantantzis et al. make use of multi-year longitudinal data from the Berlin Aging Study II to examine the role of glucose regulation capacity for trajectories of subjective well-being among older adults. Thomas Hess will discuss the importance of these papers, discuss strengths and weaknesses of the approaches chosen, and consider implications for future research.


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