title: Marital status and work-related health limitation: a longitudinal study of young adult and middle-aged Americans.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The literature establishes clearly the health benefit of marriage. Much less clear from published data is whether work-related health (dis)advantages accruing to marital transitions persist over time or are limited to the short term. Informed by the marital resources and marital crisis perspectives, this study sought links between marital status measured via three approaches and work-related health limitation, exploring these relationships across genders.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study employed data from eight recent waves (1996-2010) of the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth. It applied generalized estimating equations to estimate the impacts, on work-related health limitation, of current marital status; of marital transition 2 years in the past; and of marital transition 8 years in the past.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our gender-specific results indicated that lower likelihood of work-related health limitation was associated with a married status, a stable married status, and an entry into marriage.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results are consistent overall with the marital resources perspective. The use of three different approaches to evaluate the relationship of marital status to work-related health limitation may explain the gender-specific results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology and Social Work, Texas Woman's University, P. O. Box 425887, Denton, TX, 76204, USA. clo@twu.edu.
authors.forename: Celia C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Lo
authors.affiliation: School of Social Work, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487-0314, USA.
authors.forename: Tyrone C
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: School of Social Work, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35487-0314, USA.
authors.forename: Gaynell M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Simpson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Longitudinal study; Marital status; Marital transition; Work-related health limitation