TY - JOUR
T1 - Marital Disruption and Psychological Well-Being
T2 - A Panel Study
AU - Doherty, William J.
AU - Su, Susan
AU - Needle, Richard
PY - 1989
Y1 - 1989
N2 - This study offers prospective data on the psychological well-being of men and women before and after a marital separation, in comparison with a control group who remained married during the same period. Data were gathered as part of the Minnesota Family Health Study on a primarily middle-class White sample. Primary variables were current psychological well-being, self-esteem, mastery, substance use, and family income. Findings were quite different for men and women. Prior to separation, men in the disrupted group had lower psychological well-being scores than the continuously married group had, but showed no declines in any of the measures in the follow-up period. Separated women scored lower than did women from continuing marriages on psychological well-being prior to the separation, and they declined further afterwards. Separated women also increased their use of alcohol and other substances, and experienced a decline in family income. Findings are discussed in terms of the social causation hypothesis and the social selection hypothesis for understanding the relationship between divorce and mental health in adults. © 1989, SAGE PUBLICATIONS. All rights reserved.
AB - This study offers prospective data on the psychological well-being of men and women before and after a marital separation, in comparison with a control group who remained married during the same period. Data were gathered as part of the Minnesota Family Health Study on a primarily middle-class White sample. Primary variables were current psychological well-being, self-esteem, mastery, substance use, and family income. Findings were quite different for men and women. Prior to separation, men in the disrupted group had lower psychological well-being scores than the continuously married group had, but showed no declines in any of the measures in the follow-up period. Separated women scored lower than did women from continuing marriages on psychological well-being prior to the separation, and they declined further afterwards. Separated women also increased their use of alcohol and other substances, and experienced a decline in family income. Findings are discussed in terms of the social causation hypothesis and the social selection hypothesis for understanding the relationship between divorce and mental health in adults. © 1989, SAGE PUBLICATIONS. All rights reserved.
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U2 - 10.1177/019251389010001004
DO - 10.1177/019251389010001004
M3 - Article
SN - 0192-513X
VL - 10
SP - 72
EP - 85
JO - Journal of Family Issues
JF - Journal of Family Issues
IS - 1
ER -