IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v69y2009i11p1608-1615.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Marital status, gender, and depression: Analysis of the baseline survey of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA)

Author

Listed:
  • Jang, Soong-Nang
  • Kawachi, Ichiro
  • Chang, Jiyeun
  • Boo, Kachung
  • Shin, Hyun-Gu
  • Lee, Hyejung
  • Cho, Sung-il

Abstract

Marital status is a robust predictor of health outcomes in Western populations. However, data from Asian cultures remain sparse, and some studies suggest marked gender differences in the health benefits of marriage among Asian populations. We investigated the influence of marital status on depressive symptoms in older adult Koreans. Data were obtained from a sample of adults aged 45 to 85 years (4016 men, 5003 women) who participated in the 2006 cross-sectional baseline survey of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Depressive symptoms were measured by the 10-item Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression scale. A multiple regression model was used to examine the association between marital status and depressive symptoms, controlling for socioeconomic status, living arrangement, disability, and number of chronic diseases. In women aged 75 to 85 years, no significant differences were found between women who were married versus those who were widowed, divorced, or separated with regard to depressive symptoms. These findings were driven by increasing depressive symptoms among married women with age. Whereas divorced and widowed men in the sample reported higher rates of depressive symptoms than did married men, the difference between married vs. widowed/divorced women converged as they aged. This pattern of depressive symptoms by gender and life stage may reflect the distinctive influence of the Asian context on relations between men and women, such as traditional gender roles and patriarchal norms for older generation.

Suggested Citation

  • Jang, Soong-Nang & Kawachi, Ichiro & Chang, Jiyeun & Boo, Kachung & Shin, Hyun-Gu & Lee, Hyejung & Cho, Sung-il, 2009. "Marital status, gender, and depression: Analysis of the baseline survey of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Ageing (KLoSA)," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 69(11), pages 1608-1615, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:69:y:2009:i:11:p:1608-1615
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277-9536(09)00598-X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lee Lillard & Constantijn Panis, 1996. "Marital status and mortality: The role of health," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 33(3), pages 313-327, August.
    2. Kristi Williams, 2004. "The Transition to Widowhood and the Social Regulation of Health: Consequences for Health and Health Risk Behavior," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 59(6), pages 343-349.
    3. Gyeong-Suk Jeon & Soong-Nang Jang & Seon-Ja Rhee & Ichiro Kawachi & Sung-Il Cho, 2007. "Gender Differences in Correlates of Mental Health Among Elderly Koreans," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 62(5), pages 323-329.
    4. Linda Waite, 1995. "Does marriage matter?," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 32(4), pages 483-507, November.
    5. Manzoli, Lamberto & Villari, Paolo & M Pirone, Giovanni & Boccia, Antonio, 2007. "Marital status and mortality in the elderly: A systematic review and meta-analysis," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 77-94, January.
    6. Gary R. Lee & Alfred DeMaris & Stefoni Bavin & Rachel Sullivan, 2001. "Gender Differences in the Depressive Effect of Widowhood in Later Life," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 56(1), pages 56-61.
    7. Inaba, Akihide & Thoits, Peggy A. & Ueno, Koji & Gove, Walter R. & Evenson, Ranae J. & Sloan, Melissa, 2005. "Depression in the United States and Japan: Gender, marital status, and SES patterns," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(11), pages 2280-2292, December.
    8. Mineau, Geraldine P. & Smith, Ken R. & Bean, Lee L., 2002. "Historical trends of survival among widows and widowers," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 54(2), pages 245-254, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Inhwan Lee & Shinuk Kim & Hyunsik Kang, 2019. "Lifestyle Risk Factors and All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality: Data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-11, August.
    2. Jeong Hwa Ho, 2015. "The problem group? Psychological wellbeing of unmarried people living alone in the Republic of Korea," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 32(47), pages 1299-1328.
    3. Xue Yang & Rui She & Mason MC Lau & Joseph TF Lau, 2020. "Anticipated socio-political developments and related personal responses as structural determinants of mental health problems: A population-based study," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 66(1), pages 58-66, February.
    4. Dirk Bethmann & Robert Rudolf, 2018. "Happily ever after? Intrahousehold bargaining and the distribution of utility within marriage," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 347-376, June.
    5. Sung-Ha Lee & Jiyoun Lee & Incheol Choi, 2020. "Life Satisfaction in Later Life: The Interplay of Marital Condition and Income among Elderly Koreans," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-8, April.
    6. Gyeong-Suk Jeon & Kyungwon Choi & Sung-Il Cho, 2017. "Impact of Living Alone on Depressive Symptoms in Older Korean Widows," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-11, October.
    7. Katherine L. Forthman & Janna M. Colaizzi & Hung-wen Yeh & Rayus Kuplicki & Martin P. Paulus, 2021. "Latent Variables Quantifying Neighborhood Characteristics and Their Associations with Poor Mental Health," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(3), pages 1-19, January.
    8. Zhang, Jun & Yen, Steven T., 2013. "Depressive Symptoms and Endogenous Physical Activity: An Ordered Probability Approach," 2013 Annual Meeting, August 4-6, 2013, Washington, D.C. 150133, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association.
    9. Solveig Glestad Christiansen & Øystein Kravdal, 2023. "Union Status and Disability Pension," European Journal of Population, Springer;European Association for Population Studies, vol. 39(1), pages 1-19, December.
    10. Kibris, Arzu & Goodwin, Robin, 2024. "The long-term effects of war exposure on psychological health: An experimental study with Turkish conscript veterans," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    11. Haruhiko Imamura & Hideki Nakamura & Yuji Nishiwaki, 2018. "Relationship between the Well-Being of Elderly Men and Cohabiting with Women Who Have Had Experience as a Health Promotion Volunteer in Japan: A Cross-Sectional Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-12, December.
    12. Norton, E.C., 2016. "Health and Long-Term Care," Handbook of the Economics of Population Aging, in: Piggott, John & Woodland, Alan (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Population Aging, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 0, pages 951-989, Elsevier.
    13. Kate Birnie & Rachel Cooper & Richard M Martin & Diana Kuh & Avan Aihie Sayer & Beatriz E Alvarado & Antony Bayer & Kaare Christensen & Sung-il Cho & Cyrus Cooper & Janie Corley & Leone Craig & Ian J , 2011. "Childhood Socioeconomic Position and Objectively Measured Physical Capability Levels in Adulthood: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(1), pages 1-13, January.
    14. Edwin S. Wong, 2013. "Gender preference and transfers from parents to children: an inter-regional comparison," International Review of Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(1), pages 61-80, January.
    15. Lindsey E McKenzie & Ram N Polur & Cholrelia Wesley & Jessica D Allen & Robert E McKeown & Jian Zhang, 2013. "Social contacts and depression in middle and advanced adulthood: Findings from a US national survey, 2005–2008," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 59(7), pages 627-635, November.
    16. Jun Zhang & Yuang He & Jing Zhang, 2022. "Energy Poverty and Depression in Rural China: Evidence from the Quantile Regression Approach," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(2), pages 1-21, January.
    17. Juyeong Kim & Eun-Cheol Park, 2021. "The Impact of Work Hours on Depressive Symptoms among Koreans Aged 45 and Over," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(3), pages 1-12, January.
    18. Huyen Thi Thanh Vu & Valentina Lin & Thang Pham & Tuan Le Pham & Anh Trung Nguyen & Hung Trong Nguyen & Thanh Xuan Nguyen & Tam Ngoc Nguyen & Huong Thu Thi Nguyen & Thu Thi Hoai Nguyen & Long Hoang Ng, 2019. "Determining Risk for Depression among Older People Residing in Vietnamese Rural Settings," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(15), pages 1-10, July.
    19. Xu Wang & Rui Luo & Pengyue Guo & Menglin Shang & Jing Zheng & Yuqi Cai & Phoenix K. H. Mo & Joseph T. F. Lau & Dexing Zhang & Jinghua Li & Jing Gu, 2022. "Positive Affect Moderates the Influence of Perceived Stress on the Mental Health of Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(20), pages 1-14, October.
    20. Ang, Shannon, 2021. "Your friends, my friends, and our family: Informal social participation and mental health through the lens of linked lives," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 276(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Espinosa, Javier & Evans, William N., 2008. "Heightened mortality after the death of a spouse: Marriage protection or marriage selection?," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(5), pages 1326-1342, September.
    2. Michael Rendall & Margaret Weden & Melissa Favreault & Hilary Waldron, 2011. "The Protective Effect of Marriage for Survival: A Review and Update," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 48(2), pages 481-506, May.
    3. Eran Shor & David Roelfs & Misty Curreli & Lynn Clemow & Matthew Burg & Joseph Schwartz, 2012. "Widowhood and Mortality: A Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 49(2), pages 575-606, May.
    4. Kang, Jeong-han & Kim, Jibum & Lee, Min-Ah, 2016. "Marital status and mortality: Does family structure in childhood matter?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 152-160.
    5. G. Miller & Yuriy Pylypchuk, 2014. "Marital Status, Spousal Characteristics, and the Use of Preventive Care," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 35(3), pages 323-338, September.
    6. Robert G. Wood & Brian Goesling & Sarah Avellar, "undated". "The Effects of Marriage on Health: A Synthesis of Recent Research Evidence," Mathematica Policy Research Reports d69bf47785bc4154a4e184aa5, Mathematica Policy Research.
    7. Lei Jin & Nicholas Chrisatakis, 2009. "Investigating the mechanism of marital mortality reduction: The transition to widowhood and quality of health care," Demography, Springer;Population Association of America (PAA), vol. 46(3), pages 605-625, August.
    8. Robert G. Wood & Brian Goesling & Sarah Avellar, "undated". "The Effects of Marriage on Health: A Synthesis of Recent Research Evidence (Issue Brief)," Mathematica Policy Research Reports 2685fc6f3f9a4fbd9e672e524, Mathematica Policy Research.
    9. Kung, Claryn S.J., 2020. "Health in widowhood: The roles of social capital and economic resources," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 253(C).
    10. Sergi Trias-Llimós & Magdalena M. Muszyńska & Antonio D. Cámara & Fanny Janssen, 2017. "Smoking cessation among European older adults: the contributions of marital and employment transitions by gender," European Journal of Ageing, Springer, vol. 14(2), pages 189-198, June.
    11. van den Berg, Gerard J. & Lindeboom, Maarten & Portrait, France, 2011. "Conjugal bereavement effects on health and mortality at advanced ages," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 774-794, July.
    12. Clouston, Sean A.P. & Quesnel-Vallée, Amélie, 2012. "The role of defamilialization in the relationship between partnership and self-rated health: A cross-national comparison of Canada and the United States," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(8), pages 1342-1350.
    13. Joan Gil Trasfí, 2016. "Is marriage protecting your health in recession times?," UB School of Economics Working Papers 2016/343, University of Barcelona School of Economics.
    14. Meyler, Deanna & Stimpson, Jim P. & Peek, M. Kristen, 2007. "Health concordance within couples: A systematic review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(11), pages 2297-2310, June.
    15. Kyung-Won Choi & Gyeong-Suk Jeon, 2021. "Social Network Types and Depressive Symptoms among Older Korean Men and Women," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-14, October.
    16. Johannes Schuenemann & Holger Strulik & Timo Trimborn, 2020. "The Marriage Gap: Optimal Aging and Death in Partnerships," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 36, pages 158-176, April.
    17. Ayllón, Sara & Ferreira-Batista, Natalia N., 2015. "‘Mommy, I miss daddy’. The effect of family structure on children's health in Brazil," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 19(C), pages 75-89.
    18. Safak, Veli, 2020. "Profile of Worry in the U.S," SocArXiv hzm82, Center for Open Science.
    19. Wilson, Chris M. & Oswald, Andrew J., 2005. "How Does Marriage Affect Physical and Psychological Health? A Survey of the Longitudinal Evidence," Economic Research Papers 269622, University of Warwick - Department of Economics.
    20. Fisher, Hayley, 2012. "Just a piece of paper? The effect of marriage on health," Working Papers 2012-17, University of Sydney, School of Economics.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:69:y:2009:i:11:p:1608-1615. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.