Marriage, Quarrels, and Lovemaking

The frequency of lovemaking minus the frequency of quarrels is claimed to predict marital stability. Here, we set up a family economics model using insights from evolutionary psychology to ground this ad hoc formula. JEL Classifications: D10, D91, J12

Centenarians in the Global South: A View from Ethiopia

As global aging advances, the number of centenarians worldwide is greatly increasing. Most of what is known about centenarians comes the Global North. It is not clear what factors contribute to longevity of centenarians in impoverished, mostly rural areas of Global South nations that still lack basic amenities. Cultural differences in the profile, lifestyles, and needs of centenarians in Africa have yet to be documented. Using a case study design, this descriptive inquiry investigated the profiles of centenarians in Ethiopia including religion, marriage, education, occupation, income, and living arrangement. Data were generated through in-depth interviews with nine centenarians (1 woman, 8 men) and were analyzed using descriptive narrative analysis. Respondents were between 100 and 108 years old. All nine were adherents of Orthodox Christianity, had been married, and were great-grandparents. Their adult lives were marked by both residential and marital stability. The Ethiopian centenarians persevered through many losses and hardships with the help of strong community-based social networks. Unlike studies of centenarians in the Global North, most respondents were male and had strict religious upbringings. Understanding the unique profiles of centenarians in the Global South will help to inform research and practice with this growing population of the oldest-old.

Marital Conflict, Anger Expression, and Marital Instability: Associations by Age and Culture

Positive social relationships, such as high-quality marriages, are associated with better health, especially among older adults. Moreover, negative components in marriages (i.e., disagreements and associated emotional responses) are linked to negative outcomes such as marital disruption (McGonagle et al., 1993) and divorce (Markman et al., 2010). Factors such as marital conflicts and emotion expression threaten marital stability and health and have been shown to decrease with age and in collectivist cultures (i.e., Japan compared to U.S.; Kitayama et al., 2015; Matsunaga & Imahori, 2009). While anger has featured as a specific emotion associated with compromised health and marital quality (Carrère et al., 2005), less is known about how marital conflict and the expression of anger may contribute to marital instability in later life, or differences in these links across age and culture. Using data from married respondents participating in the second wave of the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS, n=750, Mage=55.18, SD=11.5, %Female=50.13%) study or first wave of the Midlife in Japan (MIDJA; n=706, Mage=55.26, SD=13.68, %Female=47.73%) studies, we examined associations between disagreements, anger expression, and marital risk. Preliminary analyses revealed that marital disagreements and anger expression were each associated with increased marital instability in both the MIDUS and MIDJA samples (ps<.05). Additionally, the effects of marital disagreements and anger expression did not differ between the two samples or as a function of age. Discussion will focus on the relevance of expression and regulation of emotions for understanding marital (in)stability in midlife and aging and across cultures.

Profiles of Ethiopian centenarians: A qualitative inquiry

As global aging advances, the number of centenarians worldwide is greatly increasing. Most of what is known about centenarians comes the Global North. It is not clear what factors contribute to longevity of centenarians in impoverished, mostly rural areas of Global South nations that still lack basic amenities. Cultural differences in the profile, lifestyles, and needs of centenarians in Africa have yet to be documented. Using a case study design, this descriptive inquiry investigated the profiles of centenarians in Ethiopia including religion, marriage, education, occupation, income, and living arrangement. Data were generated through in-depth interviews with nine centenarians (1 woman, 8 men) and were analyzed using descriptive narrative analysis. Respondents were between 100 and 108 years old. All nine were adherents of Orthodox Christianity, had been married, and were great-grandparents. Their adult lives were marked by both residential and marital stability. The Ethiopian centenarians persevered through many losses and hardships with the help of strong community-based social networks.. Unlike studies of centenarians in the Global North, most respondents were male and had strict religious upbringings. Understanding the unique profiles of centenarians in the Global South will help to inform research and practice with this growing population of the oldest-old.

Psychosocial Predictors of the Changing Role of Husbands as Breadwinners in a Depressed Economy in Ibadan Metropolis, Oyo State, Nigeria

Changing roles of husbands as breadwinners among couples, particularly in a poor economy, has been a source of concern for most Nigerian families, resulting in many homes being broken (divorced and separated) and even children begging for alms on the streets. Despite the extensive literature on the effects of marital conflicts, parenting styles, and economic constraints on marital stability, few studies on how these factors interact to affect husbands' evolving status as breadwinners. This study, therefore, examined the psychological predictors (marital disagreement, parenting style and economic challenge) of the changing role of husbands as breadwinners in a depressed economy in the Ibadan metropolis of Oyo State, Nigeria. Marital communication and structural theories provided the framework, while the descriptive survey design was adopted. Three Local Government Areas (LGA) – Ibadan South-west, Ibadan North-west, and Ibadan North – were selected out of the nine LGA using stratified random sampling. Three hundred participants from (3 Churches 213, 2 Markets 81, and 1 School 6) were carefully chosen through a convenience sampling technique. The instruments used were changing role r = .79, marital disagreement r = .90, parenting style r = .89 scales. Data were analysed using Pearson Product Moment Correlation and Multiple Regression Analysis at a 0.05 level of significance. The finding revealed that there were significant positive relationships between marital disagreement r = .487, p < 0.05, and economic challenge r = .249, p < 0.05 on changing roles while there was no relationship between parenting style r = -.089, p > 0.05 on changing roles. The three independent variables jointly accounted for 31.1% variance in predicting change in roles of the husband as breadwinner. The independent variables made a positive relative contribution to change in role in the following order: marital disagreement (β = -0.117, t = -2.407, p < 0.05, which had a relative contribution to changing role of husbands from breadwinner among couples in Ibadan metropolis. Specific roles and responsibilities should not be overemphasised among couples, rather the emphasis should be on improvements, achievements, and successes recorded together as husbands and wives, and not as individual people. This will reduce the increasing attitude toward self-oriented goals instead of “the family achievements.”

Reply to van den Broek et al. Comment on “Laratta et al. Marital Stability and Quality of Couple Relationships after Acquired Brain Injury: A Two-Year Follow-Up Clinical Study. Healthcare 2021, 9, 283”

We thank van den Broek et al. [...]

Comment on Laratta et al. Marital Stability and Quality of Couple Relationships after Acquired Brain Injury: A Two-Year Follow-Up Clinical Study. Healthcare 2021, 9, 283

We read with great interest the recent article by Laratta et al. [...]