Using three waves of data for 320 men living in the rural Midwest, this study tested a model which proposed independent effects of work conditions and marital experiences on change in physical health through health behaviors. The findings support the hypothesized model. Both control over work and positive marital interactions reduced the probability of a risky lifestyle in terms of health related behaviors after controlling for family economic status. Risky lifestyle, in turn, was related to poorer self and spouse reported health after controlling for previous health status and family income. The findings underscore the importance of specific work and marital processes for men's physical health.
Key Words work - marriage - lifestyle - health
This paper is based on collaborative research involving the Iowa Youth and Families Project at Iowa State University, Ames, and the Social Change Project at UNC-Chapel Hill. The combined research is supported by the National Institute of Mental Health (MH43270 and MH48165), the National Institute on Drug Abuse (DA05347), the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Program for Successful Adolescent Development among Youth in High-Risk Settings, a Research Scientist Award (MH00567), and the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station. This is Journal Paper No. J15534 of the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa; Project No. 2931.