The Psychology of Gender 4th Edition

Relationships and Health 397

European countries (Plant et al., 2008). Co-

habiting people were similar to married peo-

ple in terms of the frequency with which they

drank alcohol, but those who were cohabiting

drank more alcohol per occasion than those

who were married. An epidemiological study

showed that unmarried people had 1.25 times

the risk of mortality as married people, but

unpartnered (which included unmarried)

people had 1.31 times the risk of mortality as

married people (Lund et al., 2002). In gen-

eral, it appears cohabitation has benefits on

health—effects that are similar for women

and men—but the benefits are not as strong

as the benefits from marriage.

Do the benefits of marriage extend

to same-sex cohabiting relationships? One

study compared partnered gays and lesbians

to married people, heterosexual cohabitors,

heterosexual dating couples, unattached per-

sons, and single gays and lesbians (Wienke &

Hill, 2009). As shown in Figure 11.2, married

Is it marriage per se that leads to health

benefits, or is it the presence of a partner in

the household? Several studies have exam-

ined the effects of cohabitation on health. A

study of people over 50 years of age showed

that cohabitation did not provide the same

benefits as marriage (Brown, Bulanda, & Lee,

2005). Those in cohabiting relationships were

more depressed than those who were mar-

ried but had better mental health than those

who were widowed and divorced. A study

that examined life satisfaction in married and

cohabiting heterosexual couples in 30 coun-

tries showed that married people were more

satisfied than cohabiting couples in most

countries (Soons & Kalmijn, 2009). How-

ever, married people were also more religious

and more likely to be employed than cohab-

iting people, which accounted for some of

the marital status differences in life satisfac-

tion. Another study examined the drinking

behavior of young adults (ages 24 to 34) in 10

4

5

6

3

2

1

0

Loneliness

Married Divorced Widowed Never Married

n.s.

Males Females

FIGURE 11.1 Among married people, men and women report equal

levels of loneliness. Among divorced, widowed, and never-married people,

men report more loneliness than women.

Source: Adapted from Pinquart (2003).

M11_HELG0185_04_SE_C11.indd 397 6/21/11 12:43 PM