Marital status and well being

This bibliography provides a selection of recent references from the Australian Family & Society Abstracts  database.

The publications listed are held in the Australian Institute of Family Studies Library and can be borrowed via the inter library loan system or acquired directly from the issuing body. Direct links to documents on the Web are provided when available.

References are arranged alphabetically by title.

 

Divorce and personal wellbeing of older Australians.
de Vaus, D., Gray, M., Qu, L., et al.
In: Australian Social Policy Conference 2007. Sydney, NSW: Social Policy Research Centre, University of New South Wales, 2007. Online only

This paper examines the impact of divorce on individual well being amongst older people. Using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey (HILDA), the authors compare the social connectedness, perceived social support, life satisfaction, and general health of people aged 55-74 years old, who are divorced and single, divorced and remarried, and married and never divorced, for men and for women. A previous paper by these authors found negative financial consequences for divorce among older people. Similarly, the results of this study indicate that there is a negative impact on wellbeing for older people, varying for men and women.

 

Down (under) in the dumps: Incidence and impact of clinical depression in Australia.
Haisken-DeNew, J.
In: HILDA Survey Research Conference 2005: Papers. Parkville, Vic: Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, University of Melbourne, 2005. Online only

In most western cultures, the incidence of clinical depression is a difficult social issue to deal with. As the causes for depression are often difficult to identify, an empirical analysis with rich family and job information will allow more insight into this complex issue. Using three waves of the Australian household panel survey HILDA, detailed information concerning not only overall life satisfaction but also depression is employed to identify the incidence and determinants of depression in Australia. HILDA data identify symptoms of clinical depression separate from life satisfaction, allowing quantification of the association between the two measures of well being. In addition to standard controls, this paper examines triggers of depression, such as shocks to oneself or family members with respect to income, labour market status (firing, promotion), health (injury, death), and family status (i.e. separation, divorce, birth). Due to the panel nature of the micro data, a clear separation of individual unobserved heterogeneity and exogenous variables in the model can be made. This analysis identifies financial worsening, marital separation, death of spouse or child, being a victim of crime or violence as being the significant triggers for depression. Depression itself, as defined by being in the lowest five per cent of the mental health distribution, greatly reduces life satisfaction by as much as 0.5 points on a zero to ten scale. This is equivalent to negating any positive benefit of marriage on life satisfaction. (Author abstract, edited)

 

Effect of family structure on life satisfaction: Australian evidence.
Evans, M. D. R., & Kelley, J.
Melbourne, Vic: Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, University of Melbourne, 2004. Online only.

How do family arrangements affect subjective wellbeing? Based on data from a representative national sample of Australia (n=26,009), the pooled International Social Science Surveys / Australia, 1984-2001, this paper investigates the impact of diverse family structures on well being, including the possibility that family structure affects men and women differently. The paper also reviews the main theories linking family structure and well-being and sets out their (conflicting) predictions. The results strongly suggest that marriage makes people happier because the security and legal recognition of a formal marriage makes for committed, loving personal relationships. The practical implications of the importance of commitment are discussed, as are the public policy implications of the findings for tax and welfare policies.

 

Factors predicting sexual relationships in older people: An Australian study.
Minichiello, V., Plummer, D., & Loxton, D.
Australasian Journal on Ageing v.23 no.3 2004: 125-130

Sexuality in later life is now recognised to be an important issue. The present study identified the factors that predict sexual relationships and changes in sexual activity in a sample of 844 older persons living in Melbourne. Age, marital status, incontinence, satisfaction with physical condition, sexual knowledge, perceptions of sex as important to well being, and number of sexual partners were significantly related to sexual relationship status. The present study discusses how these findings can further inform research and be used to inform our knowledge on sexuality in later life. (Journal abstract, edited)

 

Mapping loneliness in Australia.
Flood, M.
Canberra, ACT: Australia Institute, Australian National University, 2005, and Online.

The results of this study into loneliness show that single fathers with young children are the loneliest and have the lowest levels of support and friendship of any group in Australia. The study used Wave 2 data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey to measure reported experiences of social loneliness or connectedness against an index of social support. This paper describes the study and its findings, focusing on young adults between the ages of 25 and 44, a group that shows a significant increase in the numbers of people living alone.

 

Marital biographies and subjective well being: The effect of de facto status differs for the never married and the divorced.
Evans, M., & Kelly, J.
In: HILDA Survey Research Conference 2005: Papers. Parkville, Vic: Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, University of Melbourne, 2005. Online only.

Prior research in Australia and abroad shows that people in de facto relationships are not as satisfied with their lives as are people in formal marriages, both in the cross section and in panel analyses of not previously married people. This paper investigates the degree to which this effect depends on prior marital biography, specifically on whether the respondent is previously married or not. To investigate this issue data from HILDA, a large, representative national sample of Australia (pooled N = 11,857 for this analysis), are used. Regression analysis of cross sectional and panel data examines how large are the differences in life satisfaction according to marital status and cohabitation. The 'extra benefit' of marriage is found to hold only among women and men who were not previously married. By contrast, among divorced people, those moving into de facto relationships experience just as much of a gain in subjective well being as do those getting married. (Author abstract, edited)

 

Mental health in Australia: A snapshot, 2004-05.
Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Canberra, ACT: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2006. Online only.

Drawing on data from the 2004-05 ABS National Health Survey (NHS), the 2003 Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers (SDAC) and other sources, this article provides a brief overview of the prevalence, risk factors and characteristics of persons with mental or behavioural problems in Australia. Differentials in prevalence covered are age and sex, marital status, socioeconomic status, disability, health status and country of birth. Risk factors covered are alcohol consumption, tobacco smoking and physical inactivity. There are also summary data about medications and health system costs. In 2003, mental illnesses were among the ten leading causes of disease burden in Australia, accounting for 13% of the total burden of disease.

 

New Zealanders' satisfaction with family relationships and parenting.
Robertson, J. P.
Wellington [N.Z.]: Families Commission, 2006, and Online.

This report presents the results of a national survey of New Zealanders' relationships. The survey was conducted for Relationship Services, in order to provide them with information about how New Zealanders viewed their relationships, the satisfying and challenging aspects of those relationships and how relationship problems are dealth with. It also asked about experiences of parenting and, for those who were not in a current relationship, the positive aspects and the drawbacks of being single.

 

Relationships indicators survey 2006.
Smith, R.
Deakin, ACT: Relationships Australia, 2006, and Online.

The 2006 Relationships Indicators Survey investigated issues and concerns in Australian personal relationships. This report presents the following results from the survey: the best things about the partner relationship; negative influences on the partner relationship; making the relationship better; the future of the partner relationship; why people get married; why people choose not to marry; satisfaction with current employment situation; work family balance and relationships; work and family priorities; helping address the work family balance; attitudes to relationship support services; who to get support from; Relationships Australia; the family law system; use of technology to improve relationships; use of technology to form relationships; relationship problems caused by technology; and modes of communication.

 

Researching married and cohabiting couples: A step in the right direction.
Parker, R.
Family Matters no.74 2006: 52-55

The research literature generally presents a fairly positive view of married life: it is portrayed as conferring happiness, health and wealth on those who enter. But is the picture really as simple as it appears? Are methodological limitations in this area of research hindering an ability to understand the role of relationship type in the formation and maintenance of healthy couple relationships? In this article, the author examines a recent Australian study, the Australian longitudinal panel survey, Negotiating the Life Course (NLC), and in particular focuses on the relationship effect on women's health not only for those in marital as opposed to de facto relationships, but also for those women who had never married.

 

The demographics of loneliness among older people in Perth, Western Australia.
Steed, L., Boldy, D., Grenade, L., et al.
Australasian Journal on Ageing v.26 no.2 2007: 81-86

This article reports on a study which aimed to determine the prevalence and demographic correlates of loneliness in a sample of older people in Perth, Western Australia. In a sample of 353 people with a mean age of 77.5 years, severe loneliness was reported by 7 percent of the sample and feeling lonely sometimes by 31.5 percent. Higher levels of loneliness were reported by single participants, those who had lived alone and those with worse self rated health. The protective value against loneliness of social networks appears to be, in order of importance: friends, relatives, neighbours and children. Although loneliness is not universally reported by older Perth residents, the authors concluded that its prevalence is still considerable and worthy of attention from mental health practitioners and policy makers. (Journal abstract, edited)

 

The psychological health of sole mothers in Australia.
Loxton, D., Mooney, R., & Young, A. F.
Medical Journal of Australia v.184 no.6 2006: 265-268 and Online.

This study, which used data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health, aimed to determine the psychological well being of sole mothers in Australia. The study measured demographic characteristics and economic status; prevalence of suicidal thoughts, self harm and psychoactive medication use; and depression and psychological health. Two age groups were surveyed: younger women aged 22 - 27 years and middle aged women aged 47 - 52 years. The study found that sole mothers are more likely than other women to experience debilitating psychological health problems. (Journal abstract, edited)

 

What future? The long term implications of sole motherhood for economic wellbeing.
Loxton, D.
Just Policy no.35 2005: 39-44

Sole mothers have lower paid work participation rates than partnered mothers, lower superannuation savings and are less likely to own their own home. This article uses data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health to examine the economic well being of sole mothers and to investigate the contribution of paid work participation to economic well being.

 

Who is lonely in Australia?
Flood, M.
The Australia Institute Newsletter no.42 2005: 3-4

An Australia Institute study into loneliness has found that the loneliest people in Australia are single fathers with young children. The study used Wave 2 data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey to measure reported experiences of social loneliness or connectedness against an index of social support. This article outlines the study findings, which have been published in the report entitled 'Mapping loneliness in Australia'.

 

Women's satisfaction with life following marital separation: Coping resources and adjustment of lone-parent women.
Stewart, J. A.
Journal of Divorce &Remarriage v.43 no.1-2 2005: 89-106

This study, involving 245 lone parenting women, was designed to identify factors relating to optimum adjustment and higher life satisfaction following marital separation. The study aimed to establish whether intrapsychic mechanisms, such as sense of control and sense of coherence, are more important for women's adjustment to marital separation than other traditionally researched contextual variables, such as social support and adequate finance.

 

 

* You will need an Acrobat Reader which is free from the Adobe Systems Web site: http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html