Do Family Ties Reduce Mortality? Evidence from the United States, 1966-1968

Kobrin, Frances E.; Hendershot, Gerry E.

doi:10.2307/350478

Cited by 124 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…There is considerable interest in the health differentials between fathers and single men (55), and it is often reported that married men and fathers have lower risk for certain diseases and mortality (56)(57)(58). Our findings suggest that fathers are likely exposed to lower levels of T throughout much of their prime reproductive years, which could contribute to some of these health differentials.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Longitudinal evidence that fatherhood decreases testosterone in human males

Gettler

McDade

Feranil

et al. 2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

430

381

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In species in which males care for young, testosterone (T) is often high during mating periods but then declines to allow for caregiving of resulting offspring. This model may apply to human males, but past human studies of T and fatherhood have been cross-sectional, making it unclear whether fatherhood suppresses T or if men with lower T are more likely to become fathers. Here, we use a large representative study in the Philippines (n = 624) to show that among single nonfathers at baseline (2005) (21.5 ± 0.3 y), men with high waking T were more likely to become partnered fathers by the time of follow-up 4.5 y later (P < 0.05). Men who became partnered fathers then experienced large declines in waking (median: −26%) and evening (median: −34%) T, which were significantly greater than declines in single nonfathers (P < 0.001). Consistent with the hypothesis that child interaction suppresses T, fathers reporting 3 h or more of daily childcare had lower T at follow-up compared with fathers not involved in care (P < 0.05). Using longitudinal data, these findings show that T and reproductive strategy have bidirectional relationships in human males, with high T predicting subsequent mating success but then declining rapidly after men become fathers. Our findings suggest that T mediates tradeoffs between mating and parenting in humans, as seen in other species in which fathers care for young. They also highlight one likely explanation for previously observed health disparities between partnered fathers and single men.challenge hypothesis | human evolution | hormones and behavior | paternal care | reproductive ecology I n male mammals, testosterone (T) stimulates the development and maintenance of traits and behaviors that contribute to male mating effort, including musculature, libido, conspecific aggressivity, and courtship (1-4). Although these T-driven traits factor into mating success, male reproductive fitness in some avian and mammalian species also depends on contributions to offspring care (5, 6). Because time and energy are finite (7), males in these species often face tradeoffs between conflicting behaviors related to mating and parenting. Adjustment of T production has been proposed as a physiological mechanism underlying this tradeoff, with males who focus on mating effort predicted to maintain elevated T, whereas males who cooperate with a female partner and invest in parental care should reduce T production (6,8). This model is well supported by data from a variety of avian species (6, 8), but evidence for its applicability to mammalian species in which males provide direct care is mixed (9). It is presently unclear whether T mediates the tradeoff between mating and parenting effort in human males, who often express paternal care facultatively.Humans have been described as serial monogamists who frequently engage in one or more long-lasting partnerships with females during reproductive life spans that last several decades (10-12). Humans are one of the few mammalian species in which paternal care is relati...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

Longitudinal evidence that fatherhood decreases testosterone in human males

Gettler

McDade

Feranil

et al. 2011

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

430

381

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“…Carey and Judge (2001) pointed out that human longevity is favored by social relationships and intergenerational transfers of resources. Thus, close family ties or social networks have been identified as crucial factors for later life well-being, health, and survival (Olsen et al, 1991;Kobrin and Hendershot, 1977;Anson, 2010;Steptoe et al, 2013). An increasing number of ties or contacts within a network has been shown to be associated with a lower mortality risk among the elderly (Eng et al, 2002;Berkman, 1995).…”

Section: Intergenerational Transfers and Mortalitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Care for Money? Mortality Improvements, Increasing Intergenerational Transfers, and Time Devoted to the Elderly

Vogt

Kluge

2014

SSRN Journal

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Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. The decision to publish a submission in SOEPpapers is made by a board of editors chosen by the DIW Berlin to represent the wide range of disciplines covered by SOEP. There is no external referee process and papers are either accepted or rejected without revision. Papers appear in this series as works in progress and may also appear elsewhere. They often represent preliminary studies and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be requested from the author directly. Terms of use: Documents inAny opinions expressed in this series are those of the author(s) and not those of DIW Berlin.Research disseminated by DIW Berlin may include views on public policy issues, but the institute itself takes no institutional policy positions.The SOEPpapers are available at http://www.diw.de/soeppapers Editors:Jürgen Schupp (Sociology)

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“…Other vulnerable groups which are in a sense more vulnerable than women include children and the disabled. There are a number of studies that have also linked marital status to poverty or even life longevity (Gove, 1973;Kobrin & Hendershot, 1977;Trovato & Lauris, 1998;Zick & Smith, 1991). The reasoning behind the gender based income differentials is ubiquitous in the data emanating from the centuries old discrimination against women in all spheres of mankind, be-it in education, or in labour participation and even in the preference of boys to girls in the upbringing process.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Gender and Marital Status Analysis of Household Income in a Low-Income Township

Dunga

2017

Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai Oeconomica

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Abstract. The analysis of income at household level is highly important for understanding the poverty and for supporting the efforts to deal with poverty. Poverty measures can be calculated from a multitude of approaches. A common approach is to use household income and draw a minimum level of income required for a household to be considered above or below poverty. This paper looked at income at household level from a gender perspective and a marital status perspective in order to draw conclusions of the nature of household's characteristics that are associated with higher or lower income as a proxy for poverty. Based on data collected in a low income township in South Africa, the regression analysis was applied to investigate the differences between different marital statuses and gender and how they are associated with different levels of income. The regression results reveal that female headed households have, on average, lower incomes compared to male headed households, and also, that married heads of households have higher incomes compared to the single, divorced, and widowed. The widowed had the lowest average income. JEL classification: I32

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Do Family Ties Reduce Mortality? Evidence from the United States, 1966-1968

Cited by 124 publications

References 13 publications

Longitudinal evidence that fatherhood decreases testosterone in human males

Longitudinal evidence that fatherhood decreases testosterone in human males

Care for Money? Mortality Improvements, Increasing Intergenerational Transfers, and Time Devoted to the Elderly

A Gender and Marital Status Analysis of Household Income in a Low-Income Township

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