| Abstract: | Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) I Epidemiologic Followup Study were used to examine some long-term consequences of widowhood. Beginning with a sample of over 14,000 respondents between the ages of 25 and 74, a 10-year follow-up traced 94% of those initially married and 93% of the widowed. There were no differences between these groups in mortality rate when adjusted for age and education differences. Three groups—those married at both times, those widowed during the follow-up interval, and those widowed at both times—were then compared on measures of psychosocial status and functioning at the time of the follow-up. Longitudinal analyses were also conducted for subsamples with data on the same variables at initial survey and follow-up. The widowed had lower family income and were more likely to have been institutionalized. However, they showed little or no difference on measures of self-rated health, activities of daily living, social network size, extroversion, openness to experience, psychological well-being, and depression. These results highlight the psychological resilience of most individuals and their capacity to adapt to stressful events and conditions. |
