A Profile of Later Life Marriages: Comparisons by Gender and Marriage Order

Cooney, Teresa M.; Proulx, Christine M.; Snyder-Rivas, Linley A.

doi:10.1108/s1530-353520160000010002

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…For example, remarriage may enrich the lives of divorced and widowed persons by diminishing their symptoms of depression and loneliness (Carr & Springer, ). Persons in first versus higher‐order marriages generally report comparable marital quality (Cooney, Proulx, & Snyder‐Rivas, ).…”

Section: Marriage and Romantic Partnershipsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Families in Later Life: A Decade in Review

Carr

Utz

2020

J of Marriage and Family

132

103

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Later‐life families encompass the legal, biological, romantic, and kin‐like relationships of persons ages 65 and older. Research on older families has flourished over the past decade, as population aging has intensified concerns regarding the capacities of families to care for older adults and the adequacy of public pension systems to provide an acceptable standard of living. Shifting patterns of family formation over the past half‐century have created a context in which contemporary older adults' family lives differ markedly from earlier generations. Decreasing numbers of adults are growing old with their first and only spouse, with rising numbers divorcing, remarrying, forming non‐marital romantic partnerships, or living single by choice. Remarriage and the formation of stepfamilies pose challenges and opportunities as older adults negotiate complex decisions such as inheritance and caregiving. Family relationships are consequential for older adults' well‐being, operating through both biological and psychosocial mechanisms. We synthesize research from the past decade, revealing how innovations in data and methods have refined our understanding of late‐life families against a backdrop of demographic change. We show how contemporary research refines classic theoretical frameworks and tests emerging conceptual models. We organize the article around two main types of family relationships: (1) marriage and romantic partnerships and (2) intergenerational relationships. We discuss how family caregiving occurs within these relationships, and offer three promising avenues for future research: ethnic minority and immigrant families; older adults without close kin (“elder orphans”); and the potentials of rapidly evolving technologies for intergenerational relationships and caregiving.

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Section: Marriage and Romantic Partnershipsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Families in Later Life: A Decade in Review

Carr

Utz

2020

J of Marriage and Family

132

103

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“…Likewise, women and men frequently have different evaluations of their marriages. Men report higher marital quality and satisfaction, on average, than women (Amato et al, 2003; Bulanda, 2011; Cooney et al, 2016; Rogers & Amato, 1997, 2000; Stokes, 2017). Yet, it is unclear if and how cohort variation in midlife marital quality differs by gender.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…Gender is a key factor in reports of marital quality among older adults. Men typically report higher marital quality than women (Bulanda, 2011; Cooney et al, 2016; Stokes, 2017). Research among adults younger than 55 years found that changes in marital quality across cohorts is similar for women and men or that the gap between them has decreased over time (Amato et al, 2003; Rogers & Amato, 2000).…”

Section: The Current Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Age is positively associated with marital quality (Umberson et al, 2005). Research has consistently shown that men report higher levels of marital quality than women (Amato et al, 2003; Bulanda, 2011; Cooney et al, 2016; Rogers & Amato, 1997, 2000; Stokes, 2017). Blacks tend to have lower marital quality than Whites and Hispanics (Bulanda, 2011; Bulanda & Brown, 2007), whereas marital quality is similar between Whites and Hispanics (Bulanda & Brown, 2007).…”

Section: The Current Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Previous research on marital quality differences by marriage order, however, has yielded mixed results. Some studies show that remarried older adults report lower marital happiness than those in their first marriage (Kaufman & Taniguchi, 2006), whereas other research indicates no differences between the first married and remarried (Bulanda, 2011; Cooney, Proulx, & Snyder-Rivas, 2016) in later life. To the extent that marriage order is linked to quality, midlife marital quality may have declined over the past 25 years in part because a greater proportion of the married population is in a higher order marriage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A Cohort Comparison of Midlife Marital Quality: A Quarter Century of Change

Wright

Brown

Manning

2021

Journal of Family Issues

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Marital quality has been declining among recent cohorts, but whether this pattern characterizes middle-aged and older married adults is largely unknown. The doubling of the divorce rate among persons over the age of 50 years foretells poorer quality marriages for today’s midlife adults than a generation ago. Combining data on married individuals aged 50–65 years from the 1987-88 National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH) and the 2013 Families and Relationships Study, we conduct a cohort comparison of five dimensions of midlife marital quality. Today’s older adults report more marital disagreement and instability as well as less fairness and interaction with their spouses than their counterparts did a generation ago. The two cohorts report comparable levels of marital happiness. Consistent with the upward trend in divorce during the second half of life, the quality of midlife marriages appears to have declined over the past quarter century.

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Relationship Maintenance across the Life Course

Rauer¹,

Proulx²

2019

Relationship Maintenance

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A Profile of Later Life Marriages: Comparisons by Gender and Marriage Order

Cited by 6 publications

References 58 publications

Families in Later Life: A Decade in Review

Families in Later Life: A Decade in Review

A Cohort Comparison of Midlife Marital Quality: A Quarter Century of Change

Relationship Maintenance across the Life Course

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