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Partner Relationships and Health: Marital Quality and Health Among Peri-Urban Ethiopian Couples

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 August 2016

Neetu A. John ,
Assefa Seme  and
Amy O. Tsui
Neetu A. John*
Affiliation:
International Center for Research on Women, Washington DC, USA
Assefa Seme
Affiliation:
School of Public Health, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Amy O. Tsui
Affiliation:
Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
*
ADDRESS FOR CORRESPONDENCE: Neetu A. John, International Center for Research on Women, 1120 20th Street NW, Suite 500 N, Washington DC 20036, USA. Email: neetuannjohn@gmail.com
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Abstract

The linkages between marital relationship quality (MRQ) and health are well established in the West, although mutual spousal influence on each other is underexplored. In the sub-Saharan African context, despite continued health challenges and changing marital structures, this research has been neglected. This study examined the influence of spousal MRQ domains — such as trust, commitment and conflict resolution — on each other's self-reported health over time, using two waves of data from 725 couples in peri-urban Ethiopia using the Actor Partner Interdependence Model. Although MRQ and self-rated health measures of wives and husbands were associated, these relationships were complex and gendered. While the wife's health rating had a positive influence on the husband's relationship quality, the husband's health ratings were negatively associated with the wife's relationship quality. Expanding knowledge on the role of spousal influence can broaden understanding of couple mechanisms that potentially promote positive health behaviours and protect the health of spouses in different settings.

Keywords

couplesEthiopiaspousal influencespousal interdependencesocial contextmarital relationship qualityself-rated health
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Relationships Research , Volume 7 , 2016 , e12
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2016 

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