Nadine F. Marks

Reconceptualizing the work-family interface: an ecological perspective on the correlates of positive and negative spillover between work and family.

Ecological theory was used to develop a more expanded conceptualization of the work-family interface and to identify significant correlates of multiple dimensions of work-family spillover. Using data from employed adults participating in the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (N = 1,986), negative spillover from work to family, positive spillover from work to family, negative spillover from family to work, and positive spillover from family to work were found to be distinct work-family experiences. Analyses indicated that work and family factors that facilitated development (e.g., decision latitude, family support) were associated with less negative and more positive spillover between work and family. By contrast, work and family barriers (e.g., job pressure, family disagreements) were associated with more negative spillover and less positive spillover between work and family. In some cases, results differ significantly by gender.

Marital Status Continuity and Change Among Young and Midlife Adults Longitudinal Effects on Psychological Well-Being

Using a life course theoretical framework, this study examined longitudinal effects of continuity and transitions in marital status on multiple dimensions of psychological well-being. Data came from National Survey of Families and Households 1987-1993 respondents ages 19 to 65 (N = 6,948). Differences between men and women as well as between young and midlife adults were investigated. Multivariate analyses revealed a complex pattern of effects depending on the contrast and the outcome examined. Although marriage continued to promote well-being for both men and women, in some cases—for example, autonomy, personal growth—the single fared better than the married. The effects of continuity in single status were not very different for women in contrast to men. The transition to divorce or widowhood was associated with somewhat more negative effects for women. Midlife adults evidenced more psychological resilience than young adults did in facing the challenges of a marital transition or remaining single over time.

Does It Hurt to Care? Caregiving, Work-Family Conflict, and Midlife Well-Being

This study examined the effects of caregiving for disabled children, spouses, parents, and other kin and nonkin on multiple positive and negative dimensions of psychological well-being and development using data from a population sample of employed, middle-aged men and women respondents in the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study 1992-1993 (n = 5,782). A life course role-identity theoretical framework was employed to hypothesize that contemporary social organization leads to conflicting demands across the role identities of employee and caregiver and that this conflict is an important factor in accounting for the negative effects of caregiving on well-being. Multivariate regression analyses confirmed these hypotheses and further revealed that if differences in work and family conflict between caregivers and noncaregivers were eliminated, the caregiving role would more often lead to positive effects on well-being. Key Words: caregiving, midlife, psychological well-being, work-family conflict. Understanding the consequences of assuming the role of caregiver to a disabled family member or friend is becoming an increasingly important private and public issue. Population estimates of caregiving now make it clear that the caregiving role is not a rare event in the life course (N. Marks, 1996; Stone, Cafferata, & Sangl, 1987). The prevalence of caregiving for the frail and the disabled peaks for adults in midlife when about one in five women and men provide some degree of care. This fact has led to recent scholarly interest in tracking the wellbeing of middle-aged women and men who often are faced with demanding multiple-role responsibilities related to family, employment, and community (Brody, 1981, 1985, 1990). The prevalence of caregiving responsibility for elders is also expected to increase as the United States and the world become an increasingly aging and aged society (Coward, Home, & Dwyer, 1992). Demographic trends toward longer lives, smaller families, higher rates of divorce, lower rates of marriage and remarriage, and higher rates of womens employment have led to predictions that caregiving for frail and disabled family members will fall on relatively fewer shoulders in the years ahead and that the risk of becoming a caregiver at some time or at multiple times over the life course is likely to increase (Coward et al., 1992; N. Marks, 1996; Moen, Robison, & Fields 1994). Caregiving research to date suggests that providing care for the frail and disabled leads to increased distress and burden (Schulz, Visintainer, & Williamson, 1990). There is also some evidence that caring for disabled family members is associated with poorer personal health (N. Marks, 1996; Schulz et al., 1990). However, most studies of caregiving are based on nonrepresentative samples that often include only women caregivers and lack a comparison group of noncaregivers. Research on the consequences of caregiving has focused predominantly on documenting the negative effects of caregiving; potential benefits related to the caregiving role are yet to be well investigated (Kramer, 1997). A sizable proportion of caregivers today are faced with blending the often contradictory behavioral expectations that accompany the roles of employee and the caregiver (N. Marks, 1996; Stone et al., 1987). Previous studies of employed caregivers have noted reports of considerable concerns about work-family conflict among caregivers (Scharlach & Boyd, 1989; Stone et al., 1987). Yet there is only limited evidence thus far (e.g., Gerstel & Gallagher, 1993) that addresses how many of the negative consequences of caregiving among employed persons are a result of taking on the caregiving role, itself, and how many can be accounted for by role overload. This study addresses this issue. Guided by a life course role-identity perspective, this investigation first examines associations between contrasting types of caregiving for disabled persons (i. …

Social inequalities and exercise during adulthood: toward an ecological perspective.

Grounded in ecological theory, this study examines the association among participation in regular vigorous exercise and social status, aspects of prominent life settings, interactions between life settings, and more proximal individual resources and processes using data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (N = 3,032). Among women, a higher level of earnings was associated with more vigorous exercise, yet those women with more education had a steeper decline in exercise across adulthood. Among men, those with the lowest level of education had the steepest decline in physical activity across adulthood, and earnings did not affect exercise patterns. Less participation in vigorous exercise among blacks, in contrast to nonblacks, was explained by their tendency to live in less safe neighborhoods and having more functional health problems. Finally, contextual factors from multiple domains were independently associated with participation in regular exercise. Consistent with ecological theory, these results suggest that interventions to promote exercise habits among adults need to consider the independent and interactive effects of multiple contextual factors.

Caregiving across the Lifespan: National Prevalence and Predictors

National Survey of Families and Households 1987-88 (N = 13,017) data were used to generate population estimates of in- and out-of-household caregiving for persons of all ages. More than 1 in 7 U.S. adults reported caring for relatives or friends during the previous year, including more than 1 in 5 women aged 35-64. About one third of this care was provided to nonelderly persons. Multivariate analyses revealed that gender, age, marital status, education, ethnicity, education, and employment status helped predict the likelihood of caregiving. Demographic change and feminist scholarship have helped focus more attention on informal caregiving than ever before. Until recently, the work that family members and friends did to help ill or disabled members of society remained relatively invisible due to a lack of scientific attention, conceptualization, and measurement (Daniels, 1987). However, demographic changes have now increased the relative risk of becoming a caregiver at some time--or even multiple times--during a lifetime, and caregiving is emerging as an issue of increased public interest and prominence (Brody, 1990). There are several trends that have worked together to increase the likelihood of becoming a caregiver, which is a role that often contributes to increased strain in families. The U.S. is an aging society where a growing proportion of the total population is aged 65 and older (Watkins, Mencken, & Bongaarts, 1987). Contemporary adults can expect their parents and partners to live longer lives, which increases the risk that chronic illnesses and functional disability will occur that will require nonordinary care (Verbrugge, 1989). The decline in overall family size means that caregiving responsibilities for aging parents are falling on fewer shoulders than they did in the past. A higher divorce rate is contributing to a larger share of middle-aged and older persons living without a spouse, thereby accelerating the rate at which care from someone outside of the household may be needed (Uhlenberg, Cooney, & Boyd, 1990). At the same time, the dramatic increase in the rate of womens paid employment has made it problematic to assume that full-time women homemakers can be counted on to care for the increase in the number of frail elderly (Coward, Home, & Dwyer, 1992; Seccombe, 1992). The increased rate of paid employment among women, even those who have preschool-aged children, has also provoked added concern about the caregiving load of families with younger disabled, as well as able, dependents (Seccombe, 1992). Feminist scholarship, in particular, has endeavored to bring the invisible private workload of caregiving for both young and old to increased public attention. Feminists have also sought to foster the social reconstruction of caregiving work into activities that include men as well as women and that enlists not only private interest but also public interest (Daniels, 1987; Hooyman, 1990, 1992; Pascall, 1986; Seccombe, 1992). Undoubtedly, the last few decades of research emphasizing informal caregiving for the frail elderly has helped pave the way for research that now more comprehensively considers caregiving for frail and disabled persons of all ages (Kahana, Biegel, & Wykle, 1994). Understanding the changing historical prevalence and predictors of caregiving across the lifespan is critical for family practitioners and policy makers who make decisions about need levels and the provision of family benefits and services. A population-level perspective on caregiving prevalence is important for targeting demographic groups that are likely to need complementary formal service help to enhance and support their provision of informal family support (Litwak, 1985). Researchers who undertake smallscale intensive studies of caregiving and care receiving are able to administer the detailed measures that are necessary for understanding the processes and outcomes of caregiving, but they often have difficulty recruiting large representative samples. …

Gender, Family Structure, and Social Support among Parents

Structure familiale et relations familiales et sociales : etude des formes et de la logique des relations sociales et familiales mises en oeuvre (famille etendue) selon le type de structure familiale (famille traditionnelle ou non, a deux parents, familles incompletes). Analyse de la caracteristique des relations parent-enfant, des relations de parente et des relations amicales dans ces differents cadres familiaux

Religious Social Identity as an Explanatory Factor for Associations between More Frequent Formal Religious Participation and Psychological Well-Being

Abstract Guided by social identity theory, this study investigated having a closer identification as a member of ones religious group as an explanatory mechanism for linkages between more frequent formal religious participation and better subjective psychological well-being (more positive affect, less negative affect, and more life satisfaction). Multivariate regression models were estimated based on data from 3,032 respondents, ages 25 to 74, in the 1995 National Survey of Midlife in the U.S. Results provided support for the hypothesis that religious social identity would mediate the associations between more frequent religious service attendance and all three dimensions of subjective psychological well-being examined. These findings contribute to understandings of self, religion, and health while indicating the continued importance of drawing on well-developed social psychological theory in investigations of linkages between religion and mental health.

Death of Parents and Adult Psychological and Physical Well-Being A Prospective U.S. National Study

Guided by a life course perspective, attachment theory, and gender theory, this study aims to examine the impact of death of a father, a mother, or both parents, as well as continuously living with one or both parents dead (in contrast to having two parents alive) on multiple dimensions of psychological well-being (depressive symptoms, happiness, self-esteem, mastery, and psychological wellness), alcohol abuse (binge drinking), and physical health (self-assessed health). Analyses of longitudinal data from 8,865 adults in the National Survey of Families and Households 1987-1993 reveal that a fathers death leads to more negative effects for sons than daughters and a mothers death leads to more negative effects for daughters than sons. Problematic effects of parent loss are reflected more in mens physical health reports than womens. This studys results suggest that family researchers and practitioners working with aging families should not underestimate the impact of filial bereavement on adult well-being.

Transition to Caregiving, Marital Disagreement, and Psychological Well-Being: A Prospective U.S. National Study

Guided by a life course perspective, this study investigated whether the psychological consequences of transitioning into a caregiver role for a biological parent, parent-in-law, spouse, other kin, or nonkin among married adults might be moderated by marital role quality. Using longitudinal data from a national sample of 1,842 married adults aged 35 years and older, this study estimated regression models examining whether marital disagreement prior to the transition to caregiving predicted differences in change in global happiness and depressive symptoms because of a transition into caregiving. Results indicated that, compared to noncaregivers, new caregivers for a biological parent or spouse experienced both a greater decline in happiness and a greater increase in depressive symptoms when they reported a higher level of marital disagreement. These findings suggest that the psychological effects of becoming a caregiver for a biological parent or spouse among married adults are contingent on marital role quality.

Family Solidarity and Health Behaviors Evidence From the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States

Guided by social control theory and an adapted version of Bengtson and Robertss model of intergenerational solidarity, this study used data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS), with respondents (N=3,485) ages 25 to 74, to examine the associations between multiple dimensions of family solidarity (affectual, normative, associational, functional, structural) and seven behaviors advocated to promote health. Although some results supported the hypotheses that family ties promote better health behaviors, particularly among men, a number of cases were found to have either no association or a problematic association with positive health behaviors.