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• Studies of marital quality and health have targeted conflict as the key mechanism. • As conflict declines over time, partner distress may grow more central. • Recent work has linked partner distress to proinflammatory reactivity. • This study was the first to compare reactivity to partner distress and conflict. • Proinflammatory gene expression rose further with partner distress than conflict. Marital quality shares ties to inflammatory conditions like cardiovascular disease and diabetes. For decades, research has focused on marital conflict as a primary mechanism given its potential to trigger inflammatory responses. However, longitudinal evidence suggests that marital conflict declines over time, and little attention has been paid to the inflammatory aftermath of other types of marital exchanges. A spouse's emotional distress is an important but overlooked marital context, as partners are exposed to each other's upsetting emotions throughout adulthood. To directly compare reactivity in proinflammatory gene expression to these two marital stressors and to examine differences by age and marital satisfaction, 203 community adults ages 25–90 (N = 102 couples) provided blood samples and rated their negative mood before and after they 1) watched their partner relive an upsetting personal memory and, in a separate visit 1–2 weeks later, 2) discussed a conflictual topic in their relationship. Controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, BMI, alcohol use, smoking, and comorbidities, increases in proinflammatory gene expression were significantly larger after the partner's upsetting disclosure than after marital conflict (B = 0.073, SE = 0.031, p =.018). This pattern paralleled emotional reactivity to the tasks, wherein negative mood rose more in response to the partner's disclosure than to marital conflict (B = 4.305, SE = 1.468, p =.004). In sum, proinflammatory and mood reactivity to spousal distress exceeded reactivity to marital conflict, a well-established marital stressor. Findings reveal spousal distress as a novel mechanism that may link marriage to inflammation-related diseases, and even pose risks for both happy and unhappy couples across adulthood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the effectiveness of a nurse-led couples intervention on the marital quality of couples coping with gynecological cancer. Couples coping with gynecological cancer were randomly allocated to the intervention (n = 51) and the control (n = 53) group. The intervention group received the nurse-led couples intervention developed based on the Preliminary Live with Love Conceptual Framework plus routine nursing care. The control group received only routine nursing care. Marital quality, including marital satisfaction, marital communication, and sexual life, were measured using Olson Marital Quality Questionnaire at 3 timepoints (baseline, 2- and 3-months following baseline). Generalized estimating equation was used to examine the effectiveness of the intervention in improving marital quality. Patients and husbands in the intervention group had significantly improved marital satisfaction scores (Waldχ2 = 11.109, P = 0.001; Waldχ2 = 4.849, P = 0.028); the interaction between intervention and time had a significant effect on the marital communication of both patients and their husbands (Waldχ2 = 6.214, P = 0.045; Waldχ2 = 15.460, P < 0.001). Patient-reported and husband-reported sexual life was not significantly influenced by the intervention (Waldχ2 = 0.167, P = 0.683; Waldχ2 = 3.215, P = 0.073). The nurse-led couples intervention based on the Preliminary Live with Love Conceptual Framework improved marital satisfaction and marital communication, but not sexual life, of couples coping with gynecological cancer. The provision of professional sexual health psychology training for nurses may be crucial if nurse-led models are to truly support the sexual health of couples coping with gynecological cancer. Registration: Registered with www.chictr.org.cn (ChiCTR2000034232). • Development of a nurse-led couples intervention based on the P-LLCF for GC couples. • This intervention improved GC couples' marital satisfaction and marital communication. • This intervention has the potential to improve the marital quality of GC couples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Increased systemic inflammation may explain risk for poor health after bereavement. • Few studies examine inflammation before and years after widowhood. • Contrary to expectations, systemic inflammation decreased following bereavement. • This decrease remained when comparing to people whose spouse remained alive. • More studies examining inflammation after widowhood over longer periods are needed. Bereavement is associated with poorer health and early mortality. Increased systemic inflammation is one pathophysiological pathway thought to explain this health risk. However, few studies have examined systemic inflammation before and after widowhood. The current study examined the associations between inflammation and widowhood status before and after bereavement in a sample of married adults who became widowed between assessments in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. We examined levels and change over time in systemic inflammation, as assessed by C-reactive protein (CRP), among participants who became bereaved (n = 199). We then compared these results to a sample of participants whose spouse remained living, selected using a propensity score matching algorithm (n = 199). Contrary to expectations, widowed participants' CRP decreased following bereavement, d = −0.29, p < 0.001. Change in CRP was not associated with pre-loss depression levels, caregiving status, marital quality, number of chronic diseases, prescribed medications, body mass index, age, or sex. Compared to continuously married participants, widowed participants' evidenced a significantly greater decrease in CRP after their spouse's death, β = −0.14, p < 0.001. Widowed adults' systemic inflammation decreased significantly following bereavement, both as a group and compared to people who remained married. We discuss possible explanations for this counterintuitive finding, including the measure of inflammation used in the study and the timing of the study measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sociologists have proposed numerous theories for declining marriage rates in the United States, often highlighting demographic, economic, and cultural factors. One controversial theory contends that having multiple non-marital sex partners reduces traditional incentives for men to get married and simultaneously undermines their prospects in the marriage market. For women, multiple partners purportedly reduces their desirability as spouses by evoking a gendered double-standard about promiscuity. Though previous studies have shown that having multiple premarital sex partners is negatively associated with marital quality and stability, to date no research has examined whether having multiple non-marital sex partners affects marriage rates. Data from four waves of the National Survey of Family Growth reveal that American women who report more sex partners are less likely to get married by the time of the survey (though so too were virgins). Yet this finding is potentially misleading given the retrospective and cross-sectional nature of the data. Seventeen waves of prospective data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth's 1997 mixed-gender cohort that extend through 2015 show the association between non-marital sex partners and marriage rates is temporary: recent sex partners predict lower odds of marriage, but not lifetime non-marital sex partners. Seemingly unrelated bivariate probit models suggest the short-term association likely reflects a causal effect. Our findings ultimately cast doubt on recent scholarship that has implicated the ready availability of casual sex in the retreat from marriage. Rather, the effect of multiple sex partners on marriage rates is "seasonal" for most Americans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I examine variation in trajectories of women’s marital quality across the life course. The analysis improves upon earlier research in three ways: (1) the analysis uses a sequential cohort design and data from the first 35 years of marriage; (2) I analyze rich data from a national sample; (3) I examine multiple dimensions of marital quality. Latent class growth analyses estimated on data from women in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-1979 ( N = 2604) suggest multiple trajectories for each of three dimensions of marital quality, including two trajectories of marital happiness, two trajectories of marital communication, and three trajectories of marital conflict. Socioeconomic and demographic covariates are then used to illustrate how factors such as income, cohabitation, and race-ethnicity set individuals at risk of poor marital quality throughout the life course by differentiating between high and low trajectories of marital quality. Women on low marital quality trajectories are, as expected, at much greater risk of divorce. Taken together, these findings show how fundamental socioeconomic and demographic characteristics contribute to subsequent marital outcomes via their influence on trajectories of marital quality as well as providing a better picture of the complexity in contemporary patterns of marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Dispositional optimism predicts health and well-being. [•] Interpersonal processes may contribute to these associations. [•] The interpersonal perspective provides a useful integrative framework. [•] Optimism is associated with a warm and dominant interpersonal style. [•] Optimism is associated with greater social support and marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research that approached self-control as a dyad-level predictor of relationship outcomes is hitherto scarce. To address this research gap, this study investigates three configurations of couples' level of self-control on marital conflict. We test three competing hypotheses suggested in the literature: similarity hypothesis, complementarity hypothesis, and totality hypothesis. The data used to test these hypotheses is a unique couple data (N = 1698 individuals from 894 married couples) of husbands and wives from a representative sample in Hong Kong. Two-level random-intercept models were employed. Based on our analysis with the difference-score method and response surface analysis, we find evidence to support the similarity hypothesis. The similarity of self-control between husband and wife is important in predicting marital conflict. In contrast, the total level of self-control is not predictive of marital conflict. This study highlights that marital conflict is strongly associated with the mismatch of self-control between partners. • Self-control at the dyad-level is related to marital conflict. • Marital conflict is strongly associated with the mismatch of self-control between married partners. • Similarity of self-control between husband and wife is more important than the total level in predicting marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The symbolism of rituals creates a shared understanding of events among group members. In the context of romantic relationships, a shared understanding of relationship status transitions may be associated with greater commitment and higher quality relationships. We argue that couples with differing retrospective accounts of their premarital courtship may not have had clear discussions or rituals marking relationship turning points. We test the association between discordance in couples’ reports of premarital courtship stages and marital quality using data from married couples in a national online survey (n =1504). We find that couple discordance is common, particularly among former premarital cohabitors and for the less institutionalized relationship stages of dating and stayovers, and is associated with lower marital quality. Implications for relationship measurement and the meaning of couple discordance are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Drawing on a uniquely large number of items on marital quality, this study explores the determinants of marital quality in Chitwan Valley, Nepal. Marital quality is measured with five dimensions identified through exploratory factor analysis, comprising satisfaction, communication, togetherness, problems, and disagreements. Gender, education, spouse choice, and marital duration emerge as the most important determinants of these dimensions of marital quality. Specifically, men, those with more schooling, those who participated in the choice of their spouse, and those who have been married longer have higher levels of marital quality. By contrast, caste, occupation, age at marriage, and number of children have little to no association with marital quality. However, while we identify key determinants of marital quality in this context, the majority of variation in marital quality remains unexplained. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Utilizing the stress process and life course perspectives, we investigated the influence of non-spousal social support on the associations between marital quality, physical disability, and loneliness among married older adults. Using data from the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project (NSHAP), we found that the association between physical disability and loneliness was partially accounted for by the fact that physical disability was associated with less supportive nonmarital relationships. While physically-disabled older adults in higher-quality marriages were buffered from loneliness, supportive non-martial relationships did not offset elevated loneliness among those in low-quality marriages. These associations were largely similar for men and women. Thus, although both marital and nonmarital relationships are important for loneliness, when confronted with a stressor such as disablement it is the marital relationship alone that matters. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses a research on marital quality in parents of children having developmental disabilities and factors which determines the quality of marriages. The research further states that bidirectional pathway between marital quality and child psychosocial wellbeing. As stated, higher marital quality can be achieved by the reduction in parenting stress and demands.

Abstract: Previous studies have shown individuals to hold positive biases about their relationships. The present study examined positive illusions about a partner’s specific personality characteristics in relation to relationship quality and personality. Both partners of 120 heterosexual couples participated in the present study, making it possible to examine both partner and actor effects. Results showed that although, in general, individuals did not hold positive illusions about a partner’s specific personality characteristics, positive illusions were positively related to relationship quality. In addition, interesting relations emerged between positive illusions about a partner’s personality and both individuals’ personality and marital duration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The research reported here used measures of marital success based on both marital survival and marital quality to assess how well first marriages entered at relatively late ages fare in comparison with those entered younger. Analysis of data from five American data sets indicated that the later marriages fare very well in survival but rather poorly in quality. The greatest indicated likelihood of being in an intact marriage of the highest quality is among those who married at ages 22–25, net of the estimated effects of time since first marriage and several variables that might commonly affect age at marriage and marital outcomes. The negative relationship beyond the early to mid-twenties between age at marriage and marital success is likely to be at least partially spurious, and thus it would be premature to conclude that the optimal time for first marriage for most persons is ages 22–25. However, the findings do suggest that most persons have little or nothing to gain in the way of marital success by deliberately postponing marriage beyond the mid-twenties. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examines the consequences for psychological well-being of marital stability and change over the five-year period between the two waves of the National Survey of Families and Households. We develop and test the following hypotheses: (1) those who divorce or separate experience declines in psychological well-being compared to those who remain married; (2) among those unhappy with their marriage, those who divorce or separate see improvements in psychological well-being, especially if they remarry, compared to those who remain married to the same person; (3) psychological well-being declines in the first year or two following the end of the marriage and then improves to previous levels; (4) women experience greater improvements in psychological well-being from leaving an unhappy marriage than do men. We find strong and consistent support only for the first of these. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In this paper, we examine the question of whether religion--affiliation, beliefs, and practice--provides a source of marital strength and stability in the lives of American couples. Unlike most previous studies, we focus on religion and marital quality among 433 low-income married couples with co-residential minor children, using recently collected survey data on both spouses sampled in the Marital and Relationship Survey (MARS). Our working hypothesis is that religiosity is a positive force for marital quality among low-income couples, and that a practicing faith can buffer the negative effects of economic stress on marital quality. The results indicate that most low-income couples have unexpectedly high scores on the various dimensions of marital quality (e.g., commitment, emotional support, etc.). Religious affiliation and personal religious beliefs are less important for marital quality than if couples share similar beliefs about God’s divine plans for them and their relationship, if they pray together, or if they attend religious services together. On the other hand, the stress-buffering hypothesis received little support in our analysis. At a minimum, the results clearly highlight the potential role of religion in the marital lives of low-income couples. The implication is that faith-based organizations (including churches and synagogues) may have a particularly strong role to play in nurturing the spiritual lives and enhancing the quality of the intimate marital relationships of their flocks. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper examines the relationship between specialization and happiness in marriage in the U.S. and Japan. Our findings, based on the General Social Surveys in the U.S. and Japan, indicate both similarities and differences in the determinants of marital happiness in the two countries. In the U.S., the findings are mixed. Women’s reported marital happiness in the U.S. is more likely to follow the predictions of the bargaining model where their happiness is determined by their own income. Men’s marital happiness in the U.S. follows the predictions of the specialization model; they are happier if their wives are not working or, alternatively, if they are financially dependent on their wives. In Japan, we find support for the specialization model, particularly in the case of women; they are happier if they are specialized in the household and they have a higher household income. Our research highlights how marital quality is affected by the institutional context and the normative environment. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Blacks report lower marital quality and face a higher risk of marital dissolution than Whites, but little is known about how Hispanics compare to these two groups. We examine five dimensions of marital quality as well as marital dissolution for Blacks, Whites, and Mexican Americans using data from the National Survey of Families and Households (N =6231). Mexican Americans and Whites have similar levels of marital quality, whereas Blacks report poorer marital quality than these two groups. Blacks face higher odds of marital disruption than either Mexican Americans or Whites, but this is because of Blacks’ lower marital quality. Consistent with the paradox of Mexican American nuptiality, we conclude that aspects of Mexican American culture may play a role in preserving marital quality and stability for this group despite their precarious economic situation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: We extend prior research on the association between premarital cohabitation and marital outcomes by investigating whether covenant marriage, which entails more stringent requirements for divorce, minimizes the deleterious effects of cohabitation on subsequent marital quality and stability. Using a unique longitudinal data set of covenant and standard newlywed couples in Louisiana, we find that covenant marriage does not modify the effects of premarital cohabitation on marital instability, happiness, dependency, or divorce for either wives or husbands. In fact, once we control for sociodemographic characteristics, premarital relationship factors, and marital factors, the relationships between premarital cohabitation and marital outcomes reduces to non-significance, suggesting that selection factors largely account for the deleterious effects of premarital cohabitation on marital success. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Boys' externalizing problems were high and significantly decreased over time, while girls' externalizing problems were low and stable. • Boys' IIRTV and marital quality interactively predict the concurrent and the developmental trajectories of externalizing problems. • Boys with greater IIRTV exhibited persistent high externalizing problems in the context of poor marital quality, whereas boys with lower IIRTV exhibited low externalizing problems over time. The current study investigated whether trial-to-trial intraindividual reaction time variability (IIRTV), which serves as an index of attentional control fluctuations, moderates the effect of marital quality at 7 years of age on the development of children's externalizing problems from 7 to 9 years of age (N = 197). At the first assessment (T1), a flanker task was administered to children for assessing their IIRTV. The Chinese version of a marital quality questionnaire (Evaluating and Nurturing Relationship Issues, Communication, and Happiness [ENRICH]) and the Chinese version of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) were completed by children's mothers to assess marital quality and children's externalizing problems. At the second and third assessments (T2 and T3), children's externalizing problems were reassessed by their mothers. Growth curve analyses showed that boys' externalizing problems were relatively high and significantly decreased over time, whereas girls' externalizing problems were relatively low and stable. Importantly, the results indicated that boys' IIRTV (but not girls' IIRTV) and parental marital quality interactively predict the concurrent and developmental trajectories of externalizing problems. Specifically, boys with greater IIRTV were found to exhibit a relatively persistent high level of externalizing problems in the context of poor parental marital quality, whereas boys with lower IIRTV were found to exhibit a relatively low level of externalizing problems over time regardless of their parental marital quality. The findings suggest that poorer attentional control indexed by greater IIRTV is a robust predictor of boys' externalizing problems and that better attentional control indexed by lower IIRTV may buffer the negative impact of adverse family environment on the development of boys' externalizing problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the role of mindfulness and empathic concern as associated with positive work-family outcomes of dual-career couples. Informed by broaden-and-build and crossover theory, we hypothesized that employees' mindfulness is associated with empathic concern, which relates to the work-family enrichment and balance experiences of their spouses. We collected multi-wave data from 105 matched dual-career couples. We measured employees' mindfulness and empathic concern using partner ratings and controlled for marital quality. Based on the actor-partner interdependence model, we tested our hypotheses using hierarchical multilevel modeling. We found that employees' empathic concern mediated relationships between their own mindfulness and their spouses' positive work-family outcomes. We discuss implications for both research and practice. • Mindful and empathic dual-career spouses can enhance employees' work-family positive experiences. • Multi-wave data collected from 105 matched dual-career couples. • Actor–partner interdependence model (APIM) uses the dyad as the unit of analysis. • Employees' empathy mediated relationships between their own mindfulness and their partners' positive work-family outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]