Marital SatisfactionIntroduction to Family Studies

MarriageAs we’ve discussed, although one-half of

all marriages EVENTUALLY end in a divorce, most of us take the plunge at least once!

Why?Marriage is still a major institution in the

U.S.

MarriageIs marriage good for us?

How do we measure this?

Are married people happy?

How might we measure marital happiness?

Marriage – Linda Waite – The Case for Marriage Who benefits from marriage – men or women? Marriage in general is a healthier state than being single or

divorced

Why?

Being married exerts a deterrent effect on:

1. Health compromising behavior

2. Risk-taking behavior, excess drinking, drug-abuse, i.e. one’s sense of responsibility leads to less risk

3. Married people have better mental health, regardless of gender, married people have lower rates of anxiety and depression mainly because they have greater social support

Marriage Marriage in general is a healthier state than being

single or divorced

This means on average, but there are still people who may be unhappy or abused in some marriages and would be better off if divorced

Research shows children with high conflict parents do better in their own relationships if parents divorce

Don’t stay together for the sake of children if you are in a high-conflict marriage

Gager, Linver, & Yabiku, 2009

Measuring Marriage HappinessHow do we measure marital success?

Many indicators of marital happinessOverall “global” measuresSpecific questions on particular areas of

marriageHow would you measure marital

happiness?

Measuring Marriage Happiness How do we measure marital success?

Here are some sample questions from the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH)

This survey is a national and longitudinal National means that a sample of families were selected that

represents the entire U.S. Longitudinal means the same families were followed over time

Over 6,800 families were interviewed in 1987 They were re-interviewed in 1993 One of their adult children was re-interviewed in 2002-03

Measuring Marriage Happiness How do we measure marital success?

Here are some sample questions from the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH)

Q1. It is always difficult to predict what will happen in a marriage, but realistically, what do you think the chances are that you and your husband/wife will eventually separate or divorce?

Q2. During the past year, have you ever thought that your marriage might be in trouble?

Measuring Marriage Happiness How do we measure marital success? Here are some sample questions from the National Survey of

Families and Households (NSFH)

Q3. How often, if at all, in the last year have you had open disagreements about each of the following:

A. The children B. Spending time together

C. Money D. Sex E. Your in-laws

Measuring Marriage Happiness How do we measure marital success?

Q4. How would you describe the fairness in your marriage in the following area: The division of household chores Working for pay Spending money

Measuring Marriage Happiness How do we measure marital success?

Q5. Physical violence: “During the past year, how many fights with your husband/wife resulted in: ‘you hitting, shoving, or throwing things at him/her’ or ‘him/her hitting, shoving, or throwing things at you’?

COUPLES WHO REPORT PHYSICAL VIOLENCE ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO DIVORCE

Source: Sanchez & Gager, 2000

Measuring Marriage Happiness

How do we measure marital success?

Q7: Taking all things together, how would you describe your marriage?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Very Very

unhappy happy

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

1 - VeryUnhappy

2 3 4 5 6 7 - VeryHappy

Wives' and Husbands' Report of Marital Happiness, NSFH 1993

Wives Husbands

Hmmmm?????A 50% chance of divorce…Yet most people say they are very happy?Remember social desirability bias?People report what they are supposed to feel

according to societal norms and expectationsWe are supposed to be happily married

right?This may explain these surprising findings

What leads to Marital Bliss?A recent article in the Huffington Post, from the

writers of Spousonomics, says:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paula-szuchman/spousonomics-guide_b_823683.html#s240806&title=Go_to_the

Let’s see which ones we should trust based on who did the research (or not).

SummaryMarried people are on average healthier

than non married, especially menWe have many ways to measure marital

satisfaction: Global questions like how happy is your

marriage or Combinations of questions about

particular areas of marriage