correlation between the health condition and married and unmarried people

correlation between the health condition and married and unmarried people

Abstract

The main aim of the study was to determine the correlation between the health condition and married and unmarried people. The health condition of the married and the unmarried people differ, and thus, the study was to establish how they differ. The study employed a literature review basing on past studies that were done to identify the knowledge gaps. The study adopted the simple random sampling technique to select the 500 participants as the representation of the population. The research used closed structured interviews to get factual information through their feelings and emotions. The study adopted a descriptive design procedure and used pre-tests, post-tests, and control groups and assigned the participant to a control group and an experimental group. The data was analyzed through descriptive statistics. The results obtained from the study showed that many people who were had poor health conditions were married or women. The results of the study generate both theoretical and practical awareness to other researchers and health institutions that use the information to help improve the health of the people. The study rejected the hypothesis that married people have improved health conditions than the unmarried.

Health Conditions of Married and Unmarried People

Many studies have been done to show the relationships between married people and a healthy lifestyle. This literature takes into account the theories and concepts that explain how married and unmarried people’s health conditions differ. The study used the information from these articles to support or reject the hypothesis: married couples experience better health conditions than unmarried people.

Gove, Hughes, and Style (1983) argued that married people experience some happiness and contentment that is absent in the lives of unmarried people, which relates to the wellbeing of the married couple. This concurred with Robles (2014), who described being happy in marriage with better psychological and physical health. His study showed that married couples, especially those in happy marriages, experience better health conditions than unmarried couples.

According to Barrett (1999), unmarried aged experience social challenges since they were unable to interact, unlike the married people whose social life remain unaffected even after losing their partners because they have family and friends. He called the substitution theory. However, in Simon (2002), the sex role theory of marriage and mental health argued that women are likely to suffer from stress due to pressure from society.

Simple economic theory, Wilson (2002) stated that the health of married couples deteriorates as compared to unmarried people due to change in lifestyle. Similarly, Kalmjin (2017) argued that unmarried people have better health conditions because the pain of losing a partner is worse than the pleasures of marriage.

The analysis of the studies on the issue of health and marriage creates a gap that was addressed in this study. The gap was the correlation between health and marriage.

Methods

Participants

The study was based on a sample of 500 people from New York, both married and unmarried. A simple random sampling technique made the selection of the sample. The sampling technique was used because it reduces biases and provides an accurate representation of the population. The individuals were selected based on marital status and aged between 30 and 60 years.

Measures

The data used in this study was collected through interviews that used a one-question test measuring the amount of misinformation retained. The closed-structured interviews were preferred because they are vital for the collection of correct data in large groups. For large population measuring variables with interviews receives a high response rate. This measurement helped to get detailed information through the emotions and personal feelings of the respondent. Interviews also allowed the recording of honest opinions and gave the respondents a chance to ask questions. This measure is very valid since reliability in terms of quality and consistency is accurate.

Procedure

This study used descriptive design procedures, which is known as the scientific method, whereby it includes aspects of observation and describing various behavior of an individual without any influence.

I used a pre-test, post-test, and control group design, and all the participants were volunteers. The respondents completed a demographic questionnaire that provided information on demographic characteristics such as age, economic status, and marital status. I assigned each participant to a control group and an experimental group and then gave them nominal scales. The control group got 500 participants, while the experimental group got an independent variable of married and unmarried individuals. I finally gave the nominal scale of measurement of health condition as a post-test.

Results

The results of the study showed that 45% of the participants were men, while 55% were women, and 70% were below 45 years, while 30% were above 45 years. 55% of those above 45 years were divorced or had a broken marriage, and married men were more than married women. A large number of women were reported to have frequent depressions, and the proportion was twice more than the number of men suffering from depression. Thus, the study showed that women were victims of stress as compared to men.

From the ANOVA studies, men and women showed similar results in terms of the relationship between marital status and the quality of life. Married people are likely to suffer from stress more than the unmarried, and quality of life was higher in men than women. The quality of life is generally reduced in unmarried people who were divorced, separated, or bereaved (Arcaleni, 2012).

Discussion

The study showed there was a significant relationship between health quality and marital status, and it was different across gender and age. The drop in quality of life resulting from marital issues and being unmarried increased with increase in age. The number of depression issues was lower among single people compared to married couples. These results contradicted with the studies by Gove, Hughes, and Style (1983) and Robies (2014), who associated marriage with happiness and contentment. They argued that unmarried people were likely to suffer from mental health issues.  The results also indicated that women suffered more stress and depression more than men. This supported the study by Simon (2002), which argues that women are undervalued in their relationships and undergo emotional torture, which contributes to poor health.

However, the study has faced a challenge since the health conditions of married and unmarried people could not be measured accurately, and the participants may have lied about the health conditions. This challenge limits the outcome of the study.

The results did not support the psychological theory: married couples experience better health conditions than unmarried people.

Summary and Conclusion

This study was aimed at finding the correlation between the health condition and married and unmarried people. The study hypothesized that married people had improved health conditions than the unmarried. The information that was used in the study was collected from 500 participants through interviews. The use of descriptive procedures then analyzed it.

The results showed that there was a significant relationship between quality of life and marital status in that the number of married people with mental health issues was more than single people. It also showed that men had a higher quality of life as compared to women.

The relationship between health and marital status is that married people are faced with challenges that expose them to stress and depression. Thus married people are likely to suffer mental issues more than unmarried people. Therefore, we reject the hypothesis.

References

Barrett, A. E. (1999). Social support and life satisfaction among the never-married:                                                   Examining the effects of age. Research on Aging, 21(1), 46-72

https://doi.org/10.1177/0164027599211003

Gove, W.R., Hughes, M., & Style, C.B.(1983). Does marriage have positive effects on the psychological well-being of the individual? Journal of health and social behavior, 122-131.DOI: 10.23007/2136639

Robles, T.F. (2014). Marital quality and health: implications of marriage in the 21^st century. Current directions in psychological science,23(6), 427-432

https://doi.org/10.1177/096372141459043

Simon, R. W. (2002) The health capital of families; investigation of the inter-spousal correlation in health status. Social science & medicine,55(7), 1157-1172.

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-9536(01)00253