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.

Social Support Moderates the Impact of Marital Transitions on Depression for Older Adult Women

Given the rapid growth of older Americans and the increased incidence of divorce among this population, it is paramount to identify negative health outcomes following marital transition and investigate the potential protective role of social support. Our study aims to identify relationships between change in depression and marital transitions, test whether social support moderates this association, and to examine variation by gender. The sample included 3,705 participants from the Health and Retirement Study, who reported being married or partnered in 2012. Changes in marital status were measured between 2012 and 2014 (remained married/partnered (reference), divorced/separated, and widowed). Depression was measured using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression short form (CESD-8). Three types of social support from family, friends, and children were assessed: social support, social strain, and social contact. Autoregressive multiple regression was used to examine the relationship between change in depression, marital transitions, social support, and gender. Widowhood and social strain were independently associated with an increase in CESD-8 scores between 2012 and 2014. Significant interactions between social support and social strain, and separation/divorce were identified, and the relationship between social support, depression, and divorce varied by gender. Change in depression was positively associated with social support for separated/divorced females, but not separated/divorced males. These results indicate that social support may modify the influence of divorce on changes in depression among recently divorced older females. These findings can help mental health service providers more effectively target older adults at the greatest risk of depression after experiencing a marital transition.

Effects of Relationship Type on Quality of Life in Older Adults with Cognitive Impairment and the Informal Caregivers

Purpose The purpose of this study was to assess whether there was an association between care-recipient relationship type and the QoL of older adults and their informal caregivers, and whether this association pertained to older adults’ cognitive function. Methods This was a secondary data analysis. Older adults (n=1230) and their informal caregivers (n=1871) were identified from participants in the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) Round 5 and the National Study of Caregiving (NSOC) II. A series of bivariate and multivariable regression models examined the associations among the care-recipient relationship type and QoL in older adults and their informal caregivers, adjusted for socio-demographic variables as well as cognitive functioning. Results Both older adults and caregivers’ QoL outcomes varied by the type of relationship. Recipients cared for by adult-child caregivers or multiple caregivers experienced higher functional limitation than those cared by spousal caregivers (β=.79, CI [.39, 1.19]; β=.50, CI [.17, .82], respectively). “Other” caregivers, such as siblings, friends, etc., had lower odds of experiencing negative emotional burden than spousal caregivers (OR=.26, CI [.13, .52]; OR=.53, CI [.35, .81], respectively). "Other" caregivers were also 51% less likely to experience social strain than spousal caregivers. Lower odds of experiencing negative emotional burdens were also found with multiple caregivers. The association between adult-child caregivers and social strain was explained by the recipients’ cognitive function. Conclusions Care-recipient relationship type impacts the QoL in both recipients and their informal caregivers. This association appears to be affected by care recipients' cognitive function level.

Social Support and Social Strain as Predictors of Depressive Symptom Trajectories Following a Marital Transition

We investigated trajectories of depressive symptoms over 10 years following a marital transition (widowed or divorced) using data from the Health and Retirement Study (N = 377, mean age = 67.55 years; years 2006-2016). Piecewise growth curve models were estimated to investigate whether social support and strain from one’s spouse, measured prior to transition, predicted depressive symptom trajectories following the transition. Covariates included sex, age, education, race/ethnicity, wealth, and chronic conditions. Overall, trajectories of depressive symptoms after a marital transition were significantly negative, indicating a decrease in depressive symptoms over time. Findings did not differ significantly between participants who were widowed and those who were divorced. Spousal social support was associated with an increase in depressive symptoms and spousal social strain was associated with a decrease in depressive symptoms following a marital transition in separate models: support: b = .250, SE = .062, p <.001; strain: b = -.209, SE = .095, p <.05. However, social strain was not significant when examined jointly with social support. Depressive symptoms declined significantly for low (b = -.370, SE = .100, p <.001) and average levels of social support (b = -.113, SE = .037, p <.01), but not for high levels of spouse social support (b = .143, SE = .109, p = .188). These results suggest those with the highest levels of spousal support prior to the transition, whether divorced or widowed, experienced a more difficult recovery and may be targets for additional mental health support following a marital transition.

Everyday life of the railway construction in the North of Russia: building of the Murmansk highway and changes in the revolutionary 1917

Based on archive materials and published sources the paper studies the questions of railway builders' every-day life during the construction of the Murmansk railway as well as in 1917, the period of revolutionary changes. The author suggests aspects of transformation of some social values, which provoked social strain condition and strengthened old psychological stereotypes at the same time. The study shows such daily structures as human being attitude to surrounding world’s belongings, relationship with other people and social mood. The railway builders, who have become unwilling settlers in the North of Russia, felt polycultural character of the region they found themselves together with thousands of other working migrants to Karelia and Kola North. Increasing of ethnic criminality connected with arriving of Chinese workers is identified as one of the factors, which made every-day life of construction workers and office- workers unstable.

Post-migration Stressors and Subjective Well-Being in Adult Syrian Refugees Resettled in Sweden: A Gender Perspective

A number of post-migration stressors have been shown to adversely affect mental health in refugees resettled in high-income countries, including poor social integration, financial difficulties and discrimination, and recent evidence suggests that these effects are gender specific. Social support has been found to buffer against post-migration stress in some studies on refugee populations, though the evidence on this is mixed. The present study used cross-sectional survey data from a nationwide, randomly sampled group of adult refugees from Syria resettled in Sweden between 2008 and 2013 (Nsample = 4,000, nrespondents = 1,215, response rate 30.4%) to investigate gender-specific associations between post-migration stressors and subjective well-being (SWB) and whether these associations were modified by social support. SWB was measured with the WHO-5 Well-being Index (scaled 0–100), dichotomized into high (≥50) and low (<50) SWB. Main analyses were stratified by gender, and regressed SWB on four domains of post-migration stress (financial strain, social strain, competency strain and discrimination) using logistic regression, adjusting for sociodemographic variables and traumatic experiences. Social support was tested as an effect modifier. In fully adjusted models, main risk factors for low SWB were high financial strain, especially in males (ORhigh vs. low strain, males = 10.30 [4.91–21.6], p < 0.001 vs. ORhigh vs. low strain, females= 3.84 [1.68–8.79], p = 0.002), and high social strain, only in males (ORhigh vs. low strain, males = 9.21 [3.96–21.4], p < 0.001 vs. ORhigh vs. low strain, females = 1.03 [0.40–2.64], p = ns). There was some evidence that social support buffered the adverse association of financial strain with SWB. In conclusion, the present study found clear support of gender-specific effects of post-migration stressors on SWB. Mitigation strategies and interventions should be aware of and sensitive to these potential gendered effects, and future research exploring mental health in the context of resettlement stress should have a heightened focus on the important role of gender.

Social support, social strain and declines in verbal memory: 16-year follow-up of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing cohort

Objective: Estimate differences in the rate of decline in verbal memory by levels of perceived relationship quality among community-dwelling adults. Participants: In the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA), n = 10,109 participants aged 50-89 years were assessed at wave 1 (baseline: 2002-03) and followed-up over 16 years to wave 9 (2017-18). Methods: Verbal memory was assessed biennially by tests of immediate and delayed word-recall. Positive and negative aspects of perceived relationship quality (social support and strain, respectively) were measured by relationship type (spouse; children; extended family members; friends). Random effects within-between (REWB) modelling was used to separate between- and within-person effects. Associations were estimated between levels of social support/strain and (i) baseline levels of memory (main effects), and (ii) the 2-year decline in memory (interaction with time). Results: Longitudinal associations were most prominent for men, specific to relationship type, and showed between- rather than within-person effects. Among men, higher spousal strain was associated with faster decline in memory (βbetween-effect-by-time = -0.043; 95% CI: -0.084, -0.002; p = 0.039), whilst greater support from children was associated with slower decline (βbetween-effect-by-time = 0.020; 95% CI: 0.002, 0.039; p = 0.033). Men with higher levels of strain from friends had lower baseline memory (βbetween-effect = -0.382; 95% CI: -0.627, -0.137; p = 0.002) and showed faster decline (βbetween-effect-by-time = -0.047; 95% CI: -0.095, 0.000; p = 0.051). Conclusions: Differences between persons in levels of social support and social strain were modestly associated with the rate of memory decline, especially among men. Our findings can inform future research studies and intervention strategies designed to maximise the potential of social relations to promote healthy cognitive ageing.

The intersectional role of social stress in fracture risk: results from the Women’s Health Initiative

BackgroundThe biological consequences of stress from the social environment pattern health outcomes. This study investigated whether social stress is prospectively associated with fracture incidence among racially and ethnically diverse, postmenopausal women.MethodsData from 160 709 postmenopausal women in the Women’s Health Initiative was analysed using Cox proportional hazards regression models to examine prospective associations of social stress with time to total and hip fracture incidence. Self-reported questionnaires measuring social strain, social functioning and social support were used to assess social stress.ResultsAge and race/ethnicity modified associations between social stress and total and hip fractures. HRs for the associations between higher social support (indicating lower social stress) and total fractures among those age 50–59 years were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.90 to 0.94); HR=0.94 (95% CI: 0.93 to 0.95) for those age 60–69 years and HR=0.96 (95% CI: 0.95 to 0.98) for those age 70–79 years. Higher social strain was associated with greater hip fracture incidence among Native American women (HR=1.84, 95% CI: 1.10 to 3.10), Asian women (HR=1.37, 95% CI: 1.01 to 1.86) and white women (HR=1.04, 95% CI: 1.01 to 1.08).ConclusionIdentifying population patterns of fracture incidence as biological expressions of social environments reveals how race/ethnic specific social environmental factors influence disparities in fractures.

Associations of Job Strain, Stressful Life Events, and Social Strain With Coronary Heart Disease in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study

Background The association between psychosocial stress and coronary heart disease (CHD) may be stronger in women than men and may differ across types of stressors. In this study, we assessed associations of psychosocial stressors, including job strain, stressful life events, and social strain with the incidence of CHD in women. Methods and Results We used longitudinal data from 80 825 WHI‐OS (Women's Health Initiative Observational Study) participants with a mean age of 63.4 years (7.3 years) at baseline. Job strain was assessed through linkage of Standard Occupational Classification codes to the Occupational Information Network. Stressful life events and social strain were assessed via validated self‐reported questionnaires. Cox proportional hazard models were used to evaluate associations of each stressor with CHD separately and jointly. A total of 3841 (4.8%) women developed CHD during an average of 14.7 years of follow‐up. After adjustment for age, other stressors, job tenure, and socioeconomic factors, high stressful life events score was associated with a 12% increased CHD risk, and high social strain was associated with a 9% increased CHD risk. Job strain was not independently associated with CHD risk, but we observed a statistically significant interaction between job strain and social strain ( P =0.04), such that among women with high social strain, passive job strain was associated with a 21% increased CHD risk. Conclusions High stressful life events and social strain were each associated with higher CHD risk. Job strain and social strain work synergistically to increase CHD risk.

Pandemic, politics and protests will roil Tunisia

Significance The impasse, which leaves Tunisia without a fully functioning government, is taking place against a backdrop of mounting popular protests over worsening economic conditions, the COVID-19 pandemic and other social crises. Ten years after the Arab Spring, Tunisia has established a flawed democracy but has failed to deliver better jobs and living conditions. Impacts Social instability will fuel more illegal migration to Europe. Spending cuts amid wider social turmoil will pressure wide sections of society, making sustained instances of protests and unrest likely. Social strain will lead to higher levels of criminality and violence.