Spousal Interrelations in Happiness in the Seattle Longitudinal Study: Considerable Similarities in Levels and Change over Time

Development does not take place in isolation and is often interrelated with close others such as marital partners. To examine interrelations in spousal happiness across midlife and old age, we used 35-year longitudinal data from both members of 178 married couples in the Seattle Longitudinal Study....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Developmental psychology 2011-01, Vol.47 (1), p.1-8
Main Authors: Hoppmann, Christiane A, Gerstorf, Denis, Willis, Sherry L, Schaie, K. Warner
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult. Elderly
Adults
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging
Aging (Individuals)
Aging - psychology
Biological and medical sciences
Correlation
Couple and family
Couples
Developmental psychology
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Growth theory
Happiness
Human
Humans
Individual differences
Interpersonal Relations
Interpersonal Relationships
Isolation
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Marital life
Marital Satisfaction
Marriage - psychology
Married couples
Mental health
Middle Aged
Midlife
Older Adults
Psychological Patterns
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social psychology
Spouses
Spouses - psychology
Studies
Time Factors
U.S.A
Washington
Well Being
Wellbeing
Young Adult
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Summary:Development does not take place in isolation and is often interrelated with close others such as marital partners. To examine interrelations in spousal happiness across midlife and old age, we used 35-year longitudinal data from both members of 178 married couples in the Seattle Longitudinal Study. Latent growth curve models revealed sizeable spousal similarities not only in levels of happiness but also in how happiness changed over time. These spousal interrelations were considerably larger in size than those found among random pairs of women and men from the same sample. Results are in line with life-span theories emphasizing an interactive minds perspective by showing that adult happiness waxes and wanes in close association with the respective spouse. Our findings also complement previous individual-level work on age-related changes in well-being by pointing to the importance of using the couple as the unit of analysis. (Contains 2 tables, 2 figures, and 2 footnotes.)
ISSN:0012-1649
1939-0599
DOI:10.1037/a0020788