One Line of Sexual Decline? Growth Mixture Modeling for Midlife Sexual Satisfaction.

Most research has shown that sexual satisfaction in long-term relationships tends to decline over time. Studies showing the average trajectory, however, are limited by only assessing one slope. With longitudinal data from the Flourishing Families Project, Marital Instability Dataset, and the Iowa Youth and Families Project, we utilized growth mixture modeling to assess what trajectories of sexual satisfaction exist in midlife marriages. In the three samples (one individual, two dyadic), we found clear evidence for heterogeneous sexual satisfaction trajectories, for both wives and husbands. Through the datasets, we found some trajectories did decline over time. We also found stably high, stably medium, stably low, and some trajectories that showed an increase in sexual satisfaction over time. Overall, trajectories were similar for wives and husbands, though some classes had one partner with variability while the other was stable, some classes had trajectories with wives having higher sexual satisfaction than husbands, and some classes had trajectories with husbands having higher sexual satisfaction than wives. Demographic variables were not strong distinguishers of these differing trajectories. Both marital satisfaction and perceived marital stability trajectories (based on sexual satisfaction classes) generally had similar patterns to sexual satisfaction trajectories, with a few exceptions. Both marital satisfaction and perceived marital stability were less likely to significantly change over time, have discrepancies between wives and husbands, and have either low marital satisfaction or high perceived marital instability, even if sexual satisfaction was low. These data can help couples recognize various possibilities for sexual satisfaction over time, perhaps helping them to avoid cultural myths of inevitably declining sexual satisfaction.

The interpersonal legacy of a positive family climate in adolescence.

In this research, we evaluated how well overall levels of positive engagement in adolescents' families of origin, as well as adolescents' unique expressions of positive engagement in observed family interactions, statistically predicted marital outcomes approximately 20 years later. The sample consisted of 288 focal individuals and their spouses, drawn from the Iowa Youth and Families Project (IYFP). Data for focal individuals' family-of-origin positive engagement were taken from IYFP assessments from 1989 to 1991. Data for outcomes of interest, including focal individuals' and spouses' marital behavior, were drawn from the IYFP between 2007 and 2008. Individuals' unique expressions of positive engagement in their families of origin were linked to the degree of positive engagement these adolescents later exhibited toward their spouses. A positive family climate during adolescence for one marital partner was also associated with positive marital outcomes for both partners. Overall, our results suggest that the climate in one's family of origin may have long-term significance for one's interpersonal relationships.

Parental support, partner support, and the trajectories of mastery from adolescence to early adulthood.

This study examines the long-term associations among parental support, extra-familial partner support, and the trajectories of sense of mastery from adolescence to the early adulthood years. Ten waves of panel data collected over a 16-year period from the Iowa Family Transitions Project (N = 527) were used to test the hypotheses. Results indicated that parental support in adolescence was initially associated with higher levels of sense of mastery and with greater extra-familial partner support during the transition to adulthood. Higher extra-familial partner support was subsequently associated with an increase in sense of mastery during the transition to adulthood. Overall, our results underscore the importance of mastery in smoothing the adjustment to adulthood and the importance of supportive relationships in shaping a healthy sense of mastery.

The biopsychosocial associations between marital hostility and physical health of middle-aged couples.

The aim of the current study was to investigate bio-psycho-behavioral associations between marital distress and the physical health of couples, with two different aspects of physical health outcomes receiving attention: physical illness and physical functional impairments over the middle years. Using an actor-partner interdependence model within a longitudinal approach and data from married heterosexual couples in enduring marriages (N = 370 dyads), we examined the mediating pathways which reflected biopsychosocial processes and addressed how trajectories spousal hostility may contribute to husbands' and wives' later health. The results indicated that hostile marital interactions in the early middle years could wear down couples' regulatory systems through greater psychological distress, more health-risk behaviors, and a higher body mass index (BMI), which in turn increased vulnerability to later physical health problems for both husbands and wives. For both husbands and wives, their evolved psychological distress influenced by both their own and their spouse's perceived spousal hostile behaviors, supported the stress-related dyadic process in the couples. The findings also emphasized the salient role of psychological distress in leading not only to an increased risk of physical illness directly but also to a higher risk of physical impairment through increased levels of BMI for both husbands and wives. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Life Course Patterns of Concurrent Trajectories of BMI and Affective Symptoms of Rural Mothers: Socioeconomic Antecedents and Disease Outcomes in Later Life.

OBJECTIVES: The current study, using prospective data over 25 years (1991-2015), concurrently investigates patterns of body mass index (BMI) and affective symptom trajectories in middle-aged mothers and the socioeconomic antecedents and disease outcomes of these patterns. METHOD: Growth mixture modeling was used to identify latent classes of conjoint health risk trajectories (BMI, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms) from 1991 to 2001. For each latent class, we identified mean trajectories of each health risk. Then, analyses were conducted identifying how these conjoint health risk classes were associated with respondents' socioeconomic background profiles in 1991 and subsequent chronic health problems in 2015. RESULTS: Socioeconomic background profiles were significantly associated with initially high-risk trajectories. There was a statistically significant association between membership in certain classes of conjoint trajectories and physical health outcomes in later years. Consistent patterns of association with changes in different health outcomes including onset of diseases were observed when classes of conjoint risk trajectories are examined. DISCUSSION: The identification of members of various conjoint risk trajectory groups provides a potentially useful prognostic tool for early preventive intervention efforts, treatment, and policy formation. Such interventions should promote and develop resiliency factors, thereby aiding in the redirection of middle-aged women's adverse risk trajectories.

The influence of work control trajectories on men's mental and physical health during the middle years: mediational role of personal control.

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated whether men's mental and physical health problems during the middle years may be attributed, in part, to the influence of varying levels of, and changes in, work control among members of a rural midwestern cohort. Specific study objectives were to examine (a) how trajectories of work control influence men's mental and physical health outcomes and (b) how this influence is mediated by the trajectories of personal control during the middle years. METHODS: The study used four waves of data on 318 employed men across 10 years of midlife. Variables included self-reported work control, personal control, and mental and physical health. RESULTS: The results supported the hypothesis that both the initial level and change in work control contribute to men's mental and physical health outcomes during the middle years. This influence was mediated by the initial level and change in personal control. DISCUSSION: Our results demonstrate the dynamic nature of work experiences, personal control beliefs, health, and long-term health consequences due to work conditions in a sample of middle-aged men. We discuss the theoretical implications of this.

Family antecedents and consequences of trajectories of depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood: a life course investigation.

Using prospective data from 485 adolescents over a 10-year period, the present study identifies distinct segments of depressive symptom trajectories--a nonsignificant slope during adolescence and a significant negative slope during the transition to adulthood. The study hypothesized that different age-graded life experiences would differentially influence these depressive symptom growth parameters. The findings show that early stressful experiences associated with family-of-origin SES affect the initial level of depressive symptoms. Experiences with early transitional events during adolescence explain variation in the slope of depressive symptoms during the transition to adulthood. The growth parameters of depressive symptoms and an early transition from adolescence to adulthood constrain young adult social status attainment. Consistent with the life-course perspective, family-of-origin adversity is amplified across the life-course by successively contingent adverse circumstances involving life-transition difficulties and poor mental health. The findings also provide evidence for intergenerational transmission of social adversity through health trajectories and social pathways.

The decade-long effect of work insecurity on husbands' and wives' midlife health mediated by anxiety: A dyadic analysis.

Although the detrimental physical health effects of work insecurity have been noted in previous research, less is known about the mediating processes, such as anxiety symptoms, that link work insecurity to physical health. Even less research has explored these effects at specific life stages and how these effects may impact significant others, even though the impact of this stress may vary across the life course and the mutual influences between married partners may cause dyadic effects stemming from partners' work insecurity. To fill these gaps, the current study incorporates theories that emphasize the stress-work connection, such as stress appraisal theory (Lazarus, 1999) and resource conservation theory (Hobfoll, 1989), into a neurobiological stress-health perspective. This study uses a sample of 330 consistently married, dual-earner husbands and wives who provided data at multiple time points over a 10-year period from 1991 to 2001. Results from a model including growth curves of work insecurity and anxiety symptoms when respondents were in their early middle years and reports of physical illness in their later middle years generally supported the hypothesized model. Both the level and rate of change in work insecurity were related to the change in anxiety symptoms over time. Similarly, the level and rate of change in anxiety symptoms from 1991 to 1994 were linked to subsequent illness years later in 2001. There was only partial support for the existence of partner effects. Findings are discussed as they relate to previous research as well as policy and clinical implications. (PsycINFO Database Record

Marital processes linking economic hardship to mental health: The role of neurotic vulnerability.

Both enduring neurotic vulnerabilities and economic hardship have been shown to negatively influence marital behaviors, which have physical and mental health consequences. However, because most previous research is fragmented and has focused on the early years of marriage or relatively short periods of time, their long-term effects are unclear. Using data from the Iowa Midlife Transitions Project, with a sample of 370 married couples providing data from 1991 to 2001, we assessed enduring personal and couple vulnerabilities, trajectories of family economic hardship, and couples' marital hostility using a comprehensive dyadic model to ascertain their influence on subsequent mental health. Couple marital hostility trajectories and neurotic vulnerabilities (both additively and interactively) were associated with changes in both spouses' depressive symptoms. Results also indicated that couples' marital hostility trajectories link trajectories of family economic hardship to subsequent changes in husbands' and wives' depressive symptoms. Last, associations between economic hardship trajectories, marital hostility trajectories, and depressive symptoms were moderated by couples' neurotic vulnerability as captured by a product term of husbands' and wives' neurotic vulnerability. In general, these associations were amplified for couples with a high level of couple vulnerability and weakened (or altogether absent) for those with a low level of vulnerability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

The influence of mastery on mother's health in middle years: Moderating role of stressful life context.

Using data from 416 middle-aged mothers gathered over the course of a decade, this study examined the influence of mastery trajectories (the initial level and change), on change in physical health. Mastery is defined as one's ability to control and influence his/her life and environment to reach a desired outcome or goal. Both the initial level and change in mastery from 1991 to 1994 were associated with decreased physical health problems over the middle years (1991-2001). Contextual moderation of this association by stressful life contexts including negative life events and work-family conflict was investigated. Moderation analysis showed that under conditions of low contextual life stressors, the level and increase in mastery significantly contributed to decreases in physical health problems in middle-aged mothers. Alternatively, conditions of high contextual life stressors inhibited the ability of mastery to influence physical health of mothers, suggesting that the positive health impact of mastery on physical health is mitigated by stressful life experiences. Implications for the need to maintain important personal resources, such as mastery, during times of stress are discussed.

The effects of context on the correspondence between observational ratings and questionnaire reports of hostile behavior: a multitrait, multimethod approach.

Scholars who study close relationships often measure the same concept with both observational ratings and questionnaire items. In studies where this has been done, the correlations between the two measures have often been low, and one reason may be a "context by measurement" confound. Observational ratings are usually based on behaviors during a specific task, whereas most questionnaire responses are based on a broader context such as "during the past month." In 2001, a total of 292 young couples were videotaped during a discussion task and asked to report on their own behavior and that of their partner during the discussion task and during the past month. The data were configured as a multitrait, multimethod matrix, and the magnitudes of the correlations were estimated with confirmatory factor analysis. The resulting correlations between observer ratings and questionnaire reports of hostile behavior during the videotaped discussion were roughly twice the magnitude of the correlations between observer rating and questionnaire reports during the past month. This suggests that the correspondence between behavioral categories and the content of questionnaire items is greater than previous studies have indicated.

Family hostility and depressive symptoms in middle-aged couples: Moderating effect of marital integration.

This study examined (a) the associations between family hostility (husband-wife marital hostility and child hostility) and middle-aged husbands' and wives' depressive symptoms over an 11-year time period and (b) the moderating influence of couples' marital integration on these associations as measured by their joint activity. Higher order family-level latent constructs captured chronic husband-wife (marital) hostility using husbands' and wives' reports of chronic hostile interactions from 1990 to 1992, while a higher order latent construct of chronic child hostility toward parents was measured using parental reports of children's hostile behaviors from 1990 to 1992. Structural equation modeling with data from 370 families depicted the longitudinal impact of family hostility on depressive symptoms of both husbands and wives in 2001 after accounting for earlier levels of depressive symptoms in 1991. Separate models were fit for couples with high and low levels of marital integration. For couples who experienced low levels of marital integration, chronic marital hostility and child hostility were related to depressive symptoms in husbands and wives. However, for those with high marital integration, these influences were largely diminished. (PsycINFO Database Record

Stressful Work Trajectories and Depressive Symptoms in Middle-Aged Couples: Moderating Effect of Marital Warmth.

OBJECTIVES: The present study investigated the decade-long actor and partner infleunces between husbands' and wives' trajectories of stressful work conditions (SWCs) and their depressive symptoms while also considering the moderation of these influences by spousal warmth. METHODS: Participants were 330 middle-aged dual-earner couples from the Iowa Midlife Transitions Project. Husbands and wives reported on own SWCs and reported on parenter's warmth in the years of 1991, 1992, and 1994. Depressive symptoms for husbands and wives were measured by the SCL-90-R in 1994 and 2001. Structural equation models, growth curves, and longitudinal data were used to perform our analyses. RESULTS: For husbands and wives, trajectories of SWCs over early middle years (1991-1994) contributed to depressive symptoms in 1994. Notably, for husbands and wives, the severity (level) of SWCs in 1991 had a persistent influence on depressive symptoms a decade later (2001). For husbands, under conditions of wives' low warmth, SWCs exerted a relatively strong influence on their depressive symptoms. However, under conditions of high warmth from wives, most of these influences were greatly diminished. DISCUSSION: Results from the current study indicate that contextual life experiences can have a persistent health influences over the life course.

Antecedents of transition patterns of depressive symptom trajectories from adolescence to young adulthood.

This study examined (a) transition patterns from adolescent-specific depressive symptom trajectory classes to young adult-specific trajectory classes (N = 537; 15-26 years) and (b) identified risk factors associated with these transition patterns. The latent classes and transition analyses identified three transitional patterns of depressive symptom trajectories, including a deteriorating pattern (8.2%), a recovering pattern (22.5%), and a consistently low pattern (69.3%). Additionally, the results showed that contextual risk factors (i.e., negative economic events, negative romantic relationships, and low college enrolment rates) in the transition period to young adulthood were more positively associated with deteriorated or recovered transition patterns of depressive symptom trajectories than with the consistently low transition patterns even after taking into account the effects of adolescent risk factors. The identification of dynamic transition patterns in depressive symptom trajectories from adolescence to young adulthood and risk factors provide useful tools for preventive and intervention efforts. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Heterogeneous trajectories of depressive symptoms across adolescence and young adulthood have been reported. Psychosocial characteristics differentiate trajectories of depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood. What does this study add? Dynamic transition patterns of depressive symptom trajectories are found between adolescence and young adulthood. Life experiences in the transition period are uniquely associated with the transition patterns of depressive symptom trajectories even after adjusting the effects of adolescent characteristics.

Social stratification of general psychopathology trajectories and young adult social outcomes: A second-order growth mixture analysis over the early life course.

BACKGROUND: Research has documented heterogeneous developmental trajectories of specific symptoms, such as anxiety and depression, in late childhood and adolescence. Few studies, however, have examined the heterogeneity of general psychopathology (GPP) trajectories considering symptoms of anxiety, depression, and hostility in adolescence simultaneously. Identifying antecedents for distinct trajectory groups of GPP, and their respective consequences, may provide insight into the etiological underpinnings of social antecedents of different symptoms and inform the targets and timing of intervention. METHODS: European American target adolescents (N=444, 53% female) evaluated three domain specific symptoms (i.e., symptoms of anxiety, depression, and hostility) as well as psychosocial risks and social consequences over 10 years (from 1990 [Wave 2] to 2001 [Wave 13]). First- and second-order growth mixture models (SOGMMs) were used to identify trajectories of GPP and specific symptoms from mid-adolescence through young adulthood, as well as their predictors and consequences. RESULTS: A three-class model consisting of high and escalating (10.1%), high and decreasing (23.2%), and consistently low (66.7%) GPP emerged as the preferred solution. More predictors and outcomes were associated with membership in both the high and escalating and the high and declining classes of GPP compared to corresponding classes of the specific symptoms trajectories. LIMITATIONS: Self-reported information regarding three symptoms may be a source of bias within the current study. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that unified interventions and/or prevention efforts are needed to not only assess specific symptoms, but also to treat GPP in adolescence.

Changes in family financial circumstances and the physical health of married and recently divorced mothers.

This study investigates how divorce followed by single parenthood undermines the long-term physical health of rural mothers using four waves of survey data collected in Iowa, USA from 336 married and 80 divorced mothers during a 10-year period. Findings generally support the hypothesized pathways in that single-parenthood creates financial difficulties for rural mothers. Furthermore, this financial adversity is linked to self-assessed physical health trajectories that then contribute to change in morbidity. This reflects the developmental course of morbidity during the middle years. Methodologically, this extends existing research on the association between women's marital status and well being by explicitly examining individual trajectories of change in family financial strain and physical health, as well as by examining the dynamic association between both during the middle years.

The short-term and decade-long effects of divorce on women's midlife health.

We hypothesize that divorce immediately increases psychological distress and has long-term negative consequences for the physical health of divorced people. In addition, we hypothesize that divorce indirectly causes long-term increases in distress through stressful midlife events. The hypotheses are tested using data from 416 rural Iowa women who were interviewed repeatedly in the early 1990s when they were mothers of adolescent children; the women were interviewed again in 2001. The data support the hypotheses. In the years immediately after their divorce (1991-1994), divorced women reported significantly higher levels ofpsychological distress than married women but no differences in physical illness. A decade later (in 2001), the divorced women reported significantly higher levels of illness, even after controlling for age, remarriage, education, income, and prior health. Compared to their married counterparts, divorced women reported higher levels of stressful life events between 1994 and 2000, which led to higher levels of depressive symptoms in 2001.

Relationships among sexual satisfaction, marital quality, and marital instability at midlife.

Sexual satisfaction, marital quality, and marital instability have been studied over the life course of couples in many previous studies, but less in relation to each other. On the basis of the longitudinal data from 283 married couples, the authors used autoregressive models in this study to examine the causal sequences among these 3 constructs for husbands and wives separately. Results of cross-lagged models, for both husbands and wives, provided support for the causal sequences that proceed from sexual satisfaction to marital quality, from sexual satisfaction to marital instability, and from marital quality to marital instability. Initially higher levels of sexual satisfaction resulted in an increase in marital quality, which in turn led to a decrease in marital instability over time. Effects of sexual satisfaction on marital instability appear to have been mediated through marital quality.

Couple Resilience to Economic Pressure Over Time and Across Generations.

Research suggests that economic stress disrupts perceived romantic relationship quality; yet less is known regarding the direct influence of economic stress on negative behavioral exchanges between partners over time. Another intriguing question concerns the degree to which effective problem-solving might protect against this hypothesized association. To address these issues, the authors studied two generations of couples who were assessed approximately 13 years apart (Generation 1: N = 367, Generation 2: N = 311). On average and for both generations, economic pressure predicted relative increases in couples' hostile, contemptuous, and angry behaviors; however, couples who were highly effective problem solvers experienced no increases in these behaviors in response to economic pressure. Less effective problem solvers experienced the steepest increases in hostile behaviors in response to economic pressure. Because these predictive pathways were replicated in both generations of couples it appears that these stress and resilience processes unfold over time and across generations.

The intergenerational continuity of socioeconomic status: Effects of parenting, personality, and age at first romantic partnership.

Research has indicated that socioeconomic status (SES) is related to individual health and well-being, and may be transmitted across generations. According to the interactionist model, circumstances in the family of origin and individual characteristics both account for social, economic, and developmental outcomes associated with SES. Thus, for the present investigation, we evaluated continuities in SES across 2 generations (G1, G2) as mediated through G1 maternal positive parenting, G2 personality, and G2 age of first committed romantic partnership. Participants were 432 emerging adults from an ongoing longitudinal study. Consistent with the interactionist model, G1 SES was associated with G2 personality indirectly through G1 maternal positive parenting. G1 SES, G2 personality, and G2 first partnership directly predicted G2 SES. G1 maternal positive parenting was also indirectly associated with G2 age at first partnership through G2 personality. Findings were consistent across 2 broad personality domains-negative emotionality and constraint. However, positive emotionality was not associated with G2 age at partnership. (PsycINFO Database Record