Age, marital processes, and depressed affect

Abstract

Purpose: We examined age-cohort differences in the interrelationships among marital processes and depressed affect.

Design and methods: We used data from individuals in first marriages that participated in the National Survey of Families and Households (NSFH). The NSFH interviewed one adult per household of a nationally representative sample. Participants were categorized into young (n = 2,289), middle-aged (n = 1,145), and older adult (n = 691) age cohorts.

Results: The three age cohorts did not differ on negative marital processes (NMP), but older adults scored significantly higher on marital satisfaction than young and middle-aged adults. Marital satisfaction mediated the link between NMP and depressed affect for young adults and older adults. NMP were more strongly related to depressed affect for young adults than middle-aged adults, whereas marital satisfaction was more strongly related to depressed affect for older adults than young adults.

Implications: Our findings on age-cohort differences in the salience of marital processes to depressed affect are discussed in light of socioemotional selectivity theory.