title: Affiliation and control during marital disagreement, history of divorce, and asymptomatic coronary artery calcification in older couples.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine behavioral observations of affiliation (ie, warmth versus hostility) and control (ie, dominance versus submissiveness) and prior divorce as predictors of coronary artery calcification (CAC) in older couples. In some but not all studies, marital disruption and low marital quality have been shown to confer risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). Inconsistencies might reflect limitations of self-reports of marital quality compared with behavioral observations. Also, aspects of marital quality related to CAD might differ for men and women.
  
  
  METHODS
  Couples underwent computed tomography scans for CAC and marital assessments, including observations of laboratory-based disagreement. Participants were 154 couples (mean age, 63.5 years; mean length of marriage, 36.4 years) free of prior diagnosis of CAD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Controlling traditional risk factors, we found behavioral measures of affiliation (low warmth) accounted for 6.2% of variance in CAC for women, p < .01, but not for men. Controlling behavior (dominance) accounted for 6.0% of variance in CAC for men, p < .02, but not for women. Behavioral measures were related to self-reports of marital quality, but the latter were unrelated to CAC. History of divorce predicted CAC for men and women.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  History of divorce and behavioral--but not self-report--measures of marital quality were related to CAD, such that low warmth and high dominance conferred risk for women and men, respectively. Prior research might underestimate the role of marital quality in CAD by relying on global self-reports of this risk factor.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Utah, 380 South 1530 East, Room 502, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA. tim.smith@psych.utah.edu
authors.forename: Timothy W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Bert N
authors.initials: BN
authors.lastname: Uchino
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Florsheim
authors.forename: Cynthia A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Berg
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Butner
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hawkins
authors.forename: Nancy J M
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Henry
authors.forename: Ryan M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Beveridge
authors.forename: Gale
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pearce
authors.forename: Paul N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Hopkins
authors.forename: Hyo-Chun
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Yoon
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004243:Divorce; D004291:Dominance-Subordination; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006791:Hostility; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D057566:Self Report; D012737:Sex Factors; D018454:Spouses / Q000523:psychology*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed