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"Spouse migration [to Australia] makes up 40 per cent of the current migration program and appears likely to expand further. The rules governing sponsorships, especially those made off-shore, need to be tightened if the settlement problems associated with this migration category are to reduced."
Assortative mating by body height and weight is well established in various populations, but its causal mechanisms remain poorly understood. We analyzed the effect of phenotypic assortment and social homogamy on spousal correlations for body height and body mass index (BMI, kg/m(2)). Our data derived from a questionnaire administered to the adult Finnish Twin Cohort in 1990 (response rate 77%) yielding results from 922 monozygotic and 1697 dizygotic adult twin pairs who reported information about their body height and weight and that of their spouses. Assortative mating was evident for body height and BMI. For body height, the effects of social homogamy (0.24 in men and 0.29 in women) and phenotypic assortment (0.27 and 0.28, respectively) were about the same. For BMI, the effect of social homogamy was stronger (0.31 in men and 0.28 in women) than the effect of phenotypic assortment (0.13 in both men and women). When assortative mating was taken into account, shared environmental factors had no effect on phenotypic variation in body height or BMI. Our results show that assortative mating needs to be considered in population genetic studies of body height and weight.
Although researchers have suggested that hardiness is associated with improved outcomes in stressful situations, findings regarding its moderating effects have been mixed. Relationships among hardiness, appraisal, coping, self-perceived health, and other antecedent variables were examined in a convenience sample of 72 community-dwelling spouse caregivers for persons with dementia. In this descriptive correlational design, participants completed a mailed survey. Regression analyses were used to detect main and moderating effects. Antecedent variables predicted 27% of the variance in caregiver appraisal, 23% of the variance in emotion-focused coping, and 22% of the variance in self-perceived health. In addition to its significant main effects, hardiness functioned as a significant moderator between the set of antecedent variables and caregiver appraisal. More research is needed to support the presence of main and moderating effects of hardiness in dementia caregivers.
Close relationships are usually the most important source of social support. But even in close relationships, symptoms of distress in one or both partners may undermine support processes. Seventy-seven patients receiving laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (44-73 years) and their spouses (38-72 years) provided data 1 day prior to surgery as well as 2 days and 2 weeks post-surgery. Our assumption that the commonly found support-eroding potential of receivers' depressive symptoms would not be evident during early stages of an acute crisis situation, such as major tumor surgery, tended to be supported by the data. However, depressive symptoms and degree of patient-reported post-operative pain were associated with a delayed decrease in spousal instrumental support provision 2 weeks after surgery. Spousal depression was largely unrelated to the provision of support. The present findings hint at the limits of a loved-one's capacity to assist in times of need.
The responses of 60 households subjected to varying degrees of traumatic events were examined. Specific attention was given to the differential effect that traumatic events have on spouses, especially in terms of general anxiety, state anxiety, trait anxiety, depression, and other symptoms related to trauma. The findings showed that degree of traumatization was proportional to number and intensity of stress related symptoms. Mothers, however, manifested depression and anxiety levels twice as high as fathers. The validity of these results was discussed in terms of cultural beliefs and practices.
BACKGROUND: Non-random mating affects population variation for substance use and dependence. Developmentally, mate selection leading to positive spousal correlations for genetic similarity may result in increased risk for substance use and misuse in offspring. Mate selection varies by cohort and thus, assortative mating in one generation may produce marked changes in rates of substance use in the next. We aim to clarify the mechanisms contributing to spousal similarity for cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption. METHODS: Using data from female twins and their male spouses, we fit univariate and bivariate twin models to examine the contribution of primary assortative mating and reciprocal marital interaction to spousal resemblance for regular cigarette smoking and nicotine dependence, and for regular alcohol use and alcohol dependence. RESULTS: We found that assortative mating significantly influenced regular smoking, regular alcohol use, nicotine dependence and alcohol dependence. The bivariate models for cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption also highlighted the importance of primary assortative mating on all stages of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption, with additional evidence for assortative mating across the two stages of alcohol consumption. CONCLUSIONS: Women who regularly used, and subsequently were dependent on cigarettes or alcohol were more likely to marry men with similar behaviors. After mate selection had occurred, one partner's cigarette or alcohol involvement did not significantly modify the other partner's involvement with these psychoactive substances.
This study examined the relationship between allegations of maltreatment and substance abuse, and custody awards in Florida. Information concerning the presence, or absence, of these reports was collected on 60 contested initial disposition, or disposition modification cases, and was used to model judicial decision-making. Substantiated reports of child and spouse abuse occurred very infrequently in our sample. Conversely, substance abuse allegations occurred much more frequently. Judges appeared responsive to allegations of abuse with regard to awards of primary physical residence, despite the lack of substantiated evidence. Maltreatment allegations had no apparent impact, however, on awards of shared, versus sole, custody. Additionally, reports of parental substance abuse also had no apparent impact on judicial decision-making. Implications of these results are discussed.
The present study provided an assessment of alcohol use in couples characterized by wife abuse. The Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test, Quantity-Frequency Index, Impairment Index, and a questionnaire tapping frequency and magnitude of violent episodes were administered to couples who were: (a) physically abusive, (b) maritally discordant but nonviolent, and (c) satisfactorily married. Results indicated significantly higher scores on the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test in physically abusive males based on their self-reports as well as wives' reports of husbands' drinking behavior. No significant differences were found between groups of wives on alcohol measures. In addition, correlational analyses revealed a number of significant relationships between husbands' self-reported drinking and wives' responses concerning their spouses' alcohol use. Findings are discussed in terms of the need for more extensive assessment of physically abusive males, and the utility of examining the interactive influences of alcohol and other factors on marital violence.
Twenty-six caregiving spouses of patients with dementia in the Netherlands were interviewed to better understand their problems and needs. Special attention was paid to the information the caregivers received from their general practitioner. Nineteen caregivers indicated that they received little or no information about the disease and its possible consequences. Furthermore, they experienced many problems, because of the disease and the daily care they provided; eleven caregivers indicated a decrease in social contact, which resulted in further problems. Caregivers who sought professional help at an early stage experienced fewer problems in providing daily care. The results of this project suggest that in future health education policy special attention should be paid to the role of the general practitioner and to the importance of a caregiver's social network.
The popularity of the co-dependency concept has grown rapidly in the alcoholism treatment field. At the same time, empirical findings gained through scientific research have raised questions concerning the validity of the concept. This paper discusses some of the problems that are created by the disease model of co-dependency and highlights some alternative views that may be more appropriate. It is argued that the field's understanding of the alcoholic/spouse relationship and its ability to help the spouse are limited unless other conceptualizations are seriously considered.
The Grossman model is extended to a situation in which the family is regarded as the producer of individual health and spouses are Nash-bargainers. The model has implications for the interaction between family structure, income and the stocks of health capital and the bargaining strength of different family members. The main insight is that the possibility of divorce affects the distribution of health capital between family members. We analyse, inter alia, the impact on the distribution of health (particularly regarding child health) of changes in family policies related to the dissolution of the family.
The Grossman model has been extended recently in order to take account of the fact that most people lead their lives in a family--using frameworks in which family members, respectively, (a) have common preferences and (b) are Nash-bargainers. These models, however, do not consider individual incentives for behaving strategically. In the model presented in this paper, spouses interact strategically both in the production of own health and in the production of health of other family members. We analyse, inter alia, the impact on the distribution of health of changes in family policies, such as child allowance and custody rules.
This paper explores the content, prevalence, and determinants of husbands' involvement in two aspects of their wives' maternal health: (1) providing advice and care during pregnancy and (2) attending birth. Using primarily women's reports of their spouses' involvement taken from qualitative and survey data from a sample of rural Guatemalan households, I find that husband participation is relatively high compared to some expectations and that the dynamics of male involvement differ between the two aspects. The analysis of receiving advice or care from husbands during pregnancy, an analysis done only among women who experienced a complication during pregnancy, suggests that the type of prenatal care sought and the quality of the familial and marital relationships are important factors. On the other hand, husbands' attendance at birth seems driven more by men's availability and access to birth. Together, the data show that "male involvement" is not a singular behavior and point to ways to conceptualize its complexity.
BACKGROUND: Sexuality is an important aspect of quality of life for patients with advanced heart failure and their spouses or partners. Therefore, we conducted a study to determine the types of sexual problems and concerns of patients and their spouses/partners, their level of interest in receiving information on this topic, and the relationship between their need for information and the degree of sexual problems. METHODS: Sixty-three couples were recruited from a university-affiliated, outpatient, heart failure program during their initial visit. RESULTS: The most important sexual relationship issue of both patients and spouses/partners was related to decreased frequency in sexual relations. They reported the need to receive specific information about sexual activity as moderate to very high, but it was unrelated to the level of need for education and counseling. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses and physicians need to assume interest and provide instruction related to the sexual activity needs of patients and their spouses/partners.
This study examined mechanisms of strain crossover within couples and the moderating role of gender. Data were collected at a time of military downsizing from a sample of 1,250 Russian army officers and their spouses. The authors tested a model that incorporated 3 mechanisms for the crossover of marital dissatisfaction among dual-earner couples. The model provided support for 2 suggested crossover mechanisms: direct reactions of crossover and indirect mediated effects through social undermining. Strong evidence was also provided for gender asymmetry in the crossover process. Marital dissatisfaction crossed over from husbands to wives but not vice versa, and social undermining behavior played a role in the process of crossover of marital dissatisfaction for husbands but not for wives.
In this study, the authors measured grief processing and deliberate grief avoidance and examined their relationship to adjustment at 4 and 18 months of bereavement for 2 types of losses (spouse, child) in 2 cultures (People's Republic of China, United States). Three hypotheses were compared: the traditional grief work assumption, a conditional grief work hypothesis, and a view of grief processing as a form of rumination absent among resilient individuals. Although cultural differences in grief processing and avoidance were observed, the factor structure of these measures proved invariant across cultures. Consistent with the grief work as rumination hypothesis, both grief processing and deliberate grief avoidance predicted poor long-term adjustment for U.S. participants. Furthermore, initial grief processing predicted later grief processing in both cultures. However, among the participants in the People's Republic of China, neither grief processing nor deliberate avoidance evidenced clear psychological consequences.
This study evaluated the effectiveness of 2 versions of an 8-session forgiveness group intervention for divorced individuals. Participants (randomized, n=192; analyzed, n=149) were randomly assigned to a secular forgiveness condition, a religious forgiveness condition, or a no-intervention comparison condition. Measures of forgiveness and mental health were obtained at pretest, posttest, and 6-week follow-up. Participants in both intervention conditions increased significantly more than comparison participants on self-reported forgiveness of an ex-spouse and understanding of forgiveness. Participants in the secular condition showed a greater decrease in depressive symptoms than comparison participants. Intrinsic religiousness did not moderate intervention effects.
Recent research has indicated that many people faced with highly aversive events suffer only minor, transient disruptions in functioning and retain a capacity for positive affect and experiences. This article reports 2 studies that replicate and extend these findings among bereaved parents, spouses, and caregivers of a chronically ill life partner using a range of self-report and objective measures of adjustment. Resilience was evidenced in half of each bereaved sample when compared with matched, nonbereaved counterparts and 36% of the caregiver sample in a more conservative, repeated-measures ipsative comparison. Resilient individuals were not distinguished by the quality of their relationship with spouse/partner or caregiver burden but were rated more positively and as better adjusted by close friends.