Dyadic analyses of chronic conditions and distress within marriage : a gendered perspective

textChronic conditions negatively impact well-being, and the negative impact of a chronic condition can extend beyond the diagnosed person to his or her spouse. This association may be further influenced by gender, as gender can shape how individuals experience their own chronic conditions-- including what conditions they develop-- and how they react to the conditions and distress of their spouses. In my dissertation, I examine how one spouse’s chronic conditions are related to the other spouse's psychological distress over time. I address this using quantitative analysis of the Health and Retirement Study and qualitative analysis of in-depth interviews. In my quantitative analysis, I find that the association between one spouse’s chronic conditions and the other spouse’s distress differs by gender, number of conditions, whether one or both spouses have chronic conditions, and type of condition. Regarding number of conditions, a husband’s number of chronic conditions increases his wife’s distress more so than a wife’s number of chronic conditions increases her husband’s. These associations are mitigated by the chronically ill spouse’s own distress and functional limitations. Additionally, this gender difference is more pronounced if both spouses have chronic conditions compared to if only one has chronic conditions. Regarding type of condition, lung disease and stroke are the most negatively impactful for spouses’ distress, whereas high blood pressure, cancer, and arthritis are not related to spouses’ distress. All conditions, except for stroke, relate to husbands’ and wives’ distress similarly, but a husband's stroke increases a wife's distress initially whereas the wife's stroke increases the husband's distress over time. In my qualitative analysis, I find that when women are chronically ill, they continue to emotionally care for their husbands, which likely protects their husbands from psychological distress but exacerbates women’s own distress. My results point to the importance of promoting the psychological well-being of both spouses during periods of chronic conditions. This is especially critical for spouses of people with more than one condition, chronically ill women whose husbands are also chronically ill, and spouses of people experiencing stroke and lung disease.Sociolog

Gendered emotion work around illness and injury

textThis paper brings together theoretical work on gender, caregiving, and illness to investigate emotion work performed in response to a spouse’s physical illness. We analyzed qualitative in-depth interview data with 36 individuals in 18 long-term heterosexual marriages (N=36) wherein one or both spouses experienced illness. Findings indicated that men and women performed, received, and interpreted their emotion work in gendered ways. Women with an ill spouse performed emotion work more often than men. Women who were ill themselves often performed emotion work to relieve the burden on their spouse—a dynamic not found among men who were ill. When women performed emotion work, they constructed this work as a natural propensity. Men who did not perform emotion work constructed themselves as protective and problem-solving. These findings point to underlying intra- and inter-personal processes that may help to explain why women experience higher levels of caregiver burden and depression than do men.Sociolog

Divorce, Economic Resources, and Survival Among Older Black and White Women

Objective: This study identifies which midlife economic resources reduce the association between divorce and mortality risk among older Black and White women. Background: Despite evidence that divorce reduces longevity due to economic losses, research has not established which among several common economic resources related to divorce are most important for older women’s survival. There is also relatively little research on why marital inequalities in mortality are smaller among older Black women. Drawing from diverse areas of scholarship, we hypothesize that group differences in multiple economic resources explain this finding. Method: Fractional logistic regression and Gompertz proportional hazards models were estimated with data from the NLS-MW (N=4,668; nlsinfo.org) to examine the associations between divorce, economic resources, and mortality among older Black and White women (born 1923-1937). Results: Divorced White women had significantly less housing and financial wealth than their continuously married counterparts, and Both Black and White divorcées had less vehicle wealth and higher probabilities of indebtedness. With respect to survival, net worth and housing wealth accounted for the largest reductions in marital and racial differences in survival. Conclusion: Findings suggest that wealth—home wealth in particular—is key to understanding the greater longevity of married White women compared to Black women and divorced White women. Interventions aimed at reducing health disparities must first address the social practices creating economic inequalities

Relationship Dynamics around Depression in Gay and Lesbian Couples

Research on intimate relationship dynamics around depression has primarily focused on heterosexual couples. This body of work shows that wives are more likely than husbands to offer support to a depressed spouse. Moreover, when wives are depressed, they are more likely than husbands to try and shield their spouse from the stress of their own depression. Yet, previous research has not examined depression and relationship dynamics in gay and lesbian couples. We analyze in-depth interviews with 26 gay and lesbian couples (N = 52 individuals) in which one or both partners reported depression. We find evidence that dominant gender scripts are both upheld and challenged within gay and lesbian couples, providing important insight into how gender operates in relation to depression within same-sex contexts. Our results indicate that most gay and lesbian partners offer support to a depressed partner, yet lesbian couples tend to follow a unique pattern in that they provide support both as the non-depressed and depressed partner. Support around depression is sometimes viewed as improving the relationship, but if the support is intensive or rejected, it is often viewed as contributing to relationship strain. Support is also sometimes withdrawn by the non-depressed partner because of caregiver exhaustion or the perception that the support is unhelpful. This study points to the importance of considering depression within gay and lesbian relational contexts, revealing new ways support sustains and strains intimate partnerships. We emphasize the usefulness of deploying couple-level approaches to better understand depression in sexual minority populations

Anticipatory Minority Stressors among Same-Sex Couples: A Relationship Timeline Approach

Abstract: We build on previous stress theories by drawing attention to the concept of anticipatory couple-level minority stressors (i.e., stressors expected to occur in the future that emanate from the stigmatization of certain relationship forms). A focus on anticipatory couple-level minority stressors brings with it the potential for important insight into vulnerabilities and resiliencies of people in same-sex relationships—the focus of our study. We use relationship timelines to examine stressors among a diverse sample of same-sex couples (N = 120). Respondents in same-sex relationships anticipated stressors that may not be unique to same-sex couples (e.g., purchasing a home together), but labeled many of their anticipatory stressors as reflecting the stigmatization of their same-sex relationship, in and of itself. Respondents rated anticipatory minority stressors as more stressful than other anticipatory stressors. Moreover, stressors varied by gender, age, and relationship duration, although not race/ethnicity or geographic site. This analysis is a preliminary step in examining how unique anticipatory couple-level minority stressors function as determinants of relationship quality, mental and physical health, and health disparities faced by sexual minority populations. Attempts to understand current stress levels should consider anticipatory stressors, alongside past and current life events, chronic strains, daily hassles, and minority stressors, as these processes are impossible to disentangle and may be consequential for current well-being. Cite as: Thomeer, Mieke Beth, Allen J. LeBlanc, David M. Frost, & Kayla Bowen. (2018). Anticipatory Minority Stressors among Same-Sex Couples: A Relationship Timeline Approach. Social Psychology Quarterly 81(2): 126-14

Same-sex Couples Devote More Attention to End-of-Life Plans than Heterosexual Couples

Engaging in end-of-life planning enhances the quality of later-life caregiving, health, and death. In this brief, Mieke Beth Thomeer, along with PRC doctoral student Rachel Donnelly, PRC director Debra Umberson, and Corinne Reczek reports on end-of-life planning among same-sex and different-sex married couples. They find that same-sex spouses devote considerable attention to informal planning conversations and formal end-of-life plans while heterosexual spouses report minimal formal or informal planning.Population Research Cente

Anticipatory Minority Stressors among Same-Sex Couples: A Relationship Timeline Approach

Abstract: We build on previous stress theories by drawing attention to the concept of anticipatory couple-level minority stressors (i.e., stressors expected to occur in the future that emanate from the stigmatization of certain relationship forms). A focus on anticipatory couple-level minority stressors brings with it the potential for important insight into vulnerabilities and resiliencies of people in same-sex relationships—the focus of our study. We use relationship timelines to examine stressors among a diverse sample of same-sex couples (N = 120). Respondents in same-sex relationships anticipated stressors that may not be unique to same-sex couples (e.g., purchasing a home together), but labeled many of their anticipatory stressors as reflecting the stigmatization of their same-sex relationship, in and of itself. Respondents rated anticipatory minority stressors as more stressful than other anticipatory stressors. Moreover, stressors varied by gender, age, and relationship duration, although not race/ethnicity or geographic site. This analysis is a preliminary step in examining how unique anticipatory couple-level minority stressors function as determinants of relationship quality, mental and physical health, and health disparities faced by sexual minority populations. Attempts to understand current stress levels should consider anticipatory stressors, alongside past and current life events, chronic strains, daily hassles, and minority stressors, as these processes are impossible to disentangle and may be consequential for current well-being. Cite as: Thomeer, Mieke Beth, Allen J. LeBlanc, David M. Frost, & Kayla Bowen. (2018). Anticipatory Minority Stressors among Same-Sex Couples: A Relationship Timeline Approach. Social Psychology Quarterly 81(2): 126-14

Influence of social connections on smoking behavior across the life course

Although we know much about demographic patterns of smoking, we know less about people's explanations for when, how and why they avoid, develop, or alter smoking habits and how these explanations are linked to social connections across the life course. We analyze data from in-depth interviews with 60 adults aged 25-89 from a large southwestern U.S. city to consider how social connections shape smoking behavior across the life course. Respondents provided explanations for how and why they avoided, initiated, continued, and/or quit smoking. At various times, social connections were viewed as having both positive and negative influences on smoking behavior. Both people who never smoked and continuous smokers pointed to the importance of early life social connections in shaping decisions to smoke or not smoke, and viewed later connections (e.g., marriage, coworkers) as less important. People who quit smoking or relapsed tended to attribute their smoking behavior to social connections in adulthood rather than early life. People who changed their smoking behavior highlighted the importance of transitions as related to social connections, with more instability in social connections often discussed by relapsed smokers as a reason for instability in smoking status. A qualitative approach together with a life course perspective highlights the pivotal role of social connections in shaping trajectories of smoking behavior throughout the life course

Do Gay, Lesbian, and Heterosexual Spouses Differ in the Ways They Care for Each Other During Physical Illness?

Using data collected from surveys and in-depth interviews with same- and different-sex couples, this brief summarizes two studies that analyze gendered marital dynamics around care work for physical illness. Led by PRC Director Debra Umberson, authors include PRC NICHD Trainee Rachel Donnelly and PRC alumnae Mieke Beth Thomeer, Corinne Reczek, and Rhiannon A. Kroeger. The authors found differences by gender and union type in the ways women and men give care to and receive care from their spouses in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual marriages.Population Research Cente