relationship between health and marital quality

relationship between health and marital quality

Being happy in a marriage depends on the physical and psychological health. This review identifies the strategies of measuring and conceptualizing the quality of marriage considering physical health. To expound on the significance of these results, the review shows how the quality of marriage in the 21st century is affected by health behaviours like physical activities and diet. Also, the review analyses the outcomes and the science status associated with bio-behavioural pathways that help in explaining how health influences marital quality. Marriage is a commitment to live together through all possible health and sickness states. Marriage again influences physical health, it is related to improved physical health. However, the health effects are caused by various factors. Healthy individuals are predicted to stay married for a long period. The benefits of marital quality may include societal, psychosocial, and joint economic benefits. The negative impacts may lead to divorce and widowhood.

The level of marital quality, focusing on the 21st century, is highly related to health. Results from the current meta-analysis research explained the relationship between marital quality and health. Scholars define the quality of marriage as subjective and can be determined in many ways. Typical measures include the reported behaviours towards marriage or one’s partner. Researchers may also record a video of couples as they talk about their challenges as far as health is concerned. Physical health can also be determined using various ways like the recording partner’s functioning and biological makers like levels of cholesterol. Meta-analysis identified consistent relations between better marital quality and improved health. Health problems induce many challenges in marriage association and lower the quality of marriage. Although, marital quality influences poorer health standards instead of the reverse.

Across many researches, the great relationship between health and marital quality is considered to have a small impact. So, do the effects pose any significance for health? One approach to answering this question is through comparing the impacts of these effects on various factors that affect physical health. Based on various studies, the relationship between sedentary activity, exercise, and diet had a small magnitude. Although, many scholars would support the idea that health behaviours have a great impact on marital quality despite the effects which are considered small. The other approach to show this relationship is by considering a plausible mechanism. These mechanisms ought to be biological.

The negative impacts of health on marital quality explain the increased risk of anxiety and mood disorders. Psychopathy may also be used to explain the relationship between health and the quality of marriage in the 21st century. According to meta-analysis, the quality of marriage and depression go hand in hand although the two are independent variables. The relationship between substance use and the quality of marriage also suggest the role played by health behaviours. Lowered marital quality may lead to health-compromising attitudes like unhealthy eating and substance abuse as an alternative strategy. Couples also tend to influence one another’s health behaviours like consuming a balanced diet. Marital quality is generally considered significant in influencing health behaviours between partners like better sleep and healthy eating. The other factor that strengthen or weaken the relationship between health and quality of marriage is personality. The role played by personality in health and marriage is mostly focused on neuroticism and hostility. Psychological processes and health behaviours are directly influenced by couples’ personalities. For example, hostility traits are related to marriage conflicts and poor interpersonal coexistence. The results of weak personalities in marital quality are substance abuse and symptoms of depression.

Critique and Discussion

Although the study helped in better understanding of the association between health and marital quality, I still find it shallow. Unfortunately, most studies never explain how personality modifies the relationship between health attitudes and the quality of marriage. I think there is a significant relationship between personality and marital quality. Also, studies fail to identify the impact of gender on health and marital quality. In the 21st century, a lot has changed as far as gender is concerned. Many roles played by different genders in marriage have changed. I think that the issue of gender equality has a great impact on marital quality and health behaviours. Gender-related factors ought to be highly considered in modern matrimonies. Besides, some countries allow same-sex marriages and this raises the concern of how the couples participate in domestic labour.

Generally, who is benefited or affected by marital quality? Elements like divorce predictors, cohort, age and factors that negatively affect marital quality like low socioeconomic status require a great consideration in future studies on health and marital status. Such researches would expand our knowledge of who is affected by poor health in marriages. Environmental and cultural factors also need to be explained in details since they significantly affect the relationship between health and the quality of marriages. Other challenges like economic incentives, social isolations, and income inequality should be given much attention in future studies. In conclusion, partners are advised to revise their marriage expectations instead of expecting personal fulfilment regardless of any health situation. Researches on marital quality should also focus on mental and physical health interventions.