Midlife financial strain and later‐life health and wellbeing of husbands and wives

Linking and moderating roles of couple intimacy trajectories

Bibliographic Data

ID21320038
AuthorsK A S Wickrama (0000-0002-9486-5552, University of Georgia), C W O''Neal (0000-0002-3869-2394, Department of Human Development and Family Science The University of Georgia Athens Georgia USA, corresponding author), Eric T Klopack (0000-0002-0019-1332, Leonard Davis School of Gerontology Univesrity of Southern California Los Angeles California USA)
Year2022
Volume61
Issue4
Pages1593-1609
Publication date2022-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueFamily Process (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0014-7370 • E-ISSN: 1545-5300
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/famp.12749
PMID34988990
OpenAlexW4206688746
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited71

This study investigates (a) heterogeneous trajectories of couple intimacy over the mid‐later years (average ages of 40–65) and (b) how these intimacy classes are differentially associated with spouses’ midlife financial strain as well as their later‐life health and wellbeing outcomes. The sample was comprised of white couples in long‐term marriages from the rural Mid‐west who experienced the economic downturn of the farm crisis in late 1980s. Couple‐level measures of emotional intimacy and sexual intimacy were created by summing husbands’ and wives’ reports. Using growth mixture modeling with a sample of 304 couples, conjoint intimacy classes were identified from trajectories of couple emotional intimacy and sexual intimacy. Three qualitatively different latent intimacy classes of couples were identified: Consistently High, Moderate and Increasing, and Chronically Low. Intimacy classes were differentially associated with midlife financial strain and later‐life health and wellbeing. Spouses with consistently high and moderate and increasing intimacy in their mid‐later years averaged lower financial strain in early midlife and better health and wellbeing outcomes in later years (>67 years) compared to those with consistently low intimacy after controlling for lagged health measures. The identification of couple intimacy trajectory groups provides a potentially useful prognostic tool for counseling efforts that can promote and develop resiliency factors to aid in the redirection of adverse couple intimacy trajectories

Developmental psychology · Health and Retirement Study · Latent growth modeling · Structural equation modeling · Clinical Psychology · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Health disparities and outcomes · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology · Gerontology