Having good communication, a reliable partner and understanding in a marriage can boost a person’s health, say experts. But having more negative than positive exchanges can diminish these benefits in the relationship and actually hurt one’s health, especially for those who have been married for a long time, says a new study that examines the role of marital quality in the physical health of mature adults – over age 50.
Findings of the study will be presented at the 112th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association (APA) in Honolulu.
Certain behaviors by one partner in long-term marriages appear to contribute to a spouse’s likelihood of experiencing chronic health problems, more disability and poorer perceived health, according to a study that looks at 729 adults who were at least 50 years of age and currently married and in their first marriage. Researcher Jamila Bookwala, Ph.D., of Lafayette College used data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) on five dimensions of marital quality (disagreement, positive and negative spousal behaviors, overall quality of relationship and marital communication) and on four indicators of physical health (physical symptoms, chronic health problems, physical disability and perceived health). This is one of the first studies to use a large probability-based sample of middle-aged and older individuals.
In this study, said Bookwala, the marital quality of the relationship does contribute significantly to the physical health of adults aged 50 and older. In particular, the occurrence of negative spousal behaviors, such as the spouse making excessive demands, being too critical or argumentative, being unreliable or continually agitating one’s partner was associated with poorer physical health for the respondent. And, said Bookwala, these negative behaviors outweighed any positive spousal behaviors in influencing physical health.