Marital Transitions, Change in Depressive Symptomology, and Quality of Social Relationships in Midlife and Older U.S. Adults: An Analysis of the Health and Retirement Study

Abstract

Preventing negative health outcomes following marital transitions can promote personal recovery and well-being. We used the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) (2012, 2014) to test whether social relationship quality moderated the association between marital transition and change in depressive symptomology among U.S. adults aged 50 and older (n = 3,705). Marital status transitions between 2012 and 2014 included remained married/partnered, divorced/separated, and widowed. Depressive symptomology was measured using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale 8 Short Form (CES-D 8). Social support, social contact, and social strain were indicators of social relationship quality. Change in depressive symptomology was modeled using autoregressive multiple regression. Social relationship quality appeared to influence depressive symptomatology for those experiencing divorce/separation. Compared to individuals who remained married/partnered, depressive symptomatology in those experiencing separation/divorce decreased among those reporting low social support, increased among those reporting high social support, and increased among those who reported low social strain. Limitations and clinical implications are discussed.