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Relationship Disruptions and Health: From Social Epidemiology to Social Psychophysiology

Relationship Disruptions and Health: From Social Epidemiology to Social Psychophysiology. David A. Sbarra, Ph.D. Advancing Integrative Psychological Research on Adaptive and Healthy Aging NIA/ISPR Workshop Berkeley, CA May 21, 2009. Introduction and Overview

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Relationship Disruptions and Health: From Social Epidemiology to Social Psychophysiology

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  1. Relationship Disruptions and Health: From Social Epidemiology to Social Psychophysiology David A. Sbarra, Ph.D. Advancing Integrative PsychologicalResearch on Adaptive and Healthy Aging NIA/ISPR Workshop Berkeley, CA May 21, 2009

  2. Introduction and Overview • Three studies with different measurement resolutions. • Relevance to aging research: • Adaptation is a developmental process that unfolds over time. • Accumulation of small effects. • Ultimate goal is a deeper understanding of time-based mechanisms of action.

  3. Study 1: Marital status is not static • Introduction • Do changes in marital status alter the risk of early mortality? • Results • Main finding: Substantial difference in hazard ratios predicting mortality between “always” divorced and “ever” divorced adults in the CHS. “Always” vs. All Others • Data • Charleston Heart Study (CHS; N = 1,376) began in 1960. Mortality data through 2000. “Ever” vs. All Others Sbarra & Nietert, 2009

  4. Study 2: Marriage and Inflammation • Introduction • Are marital disruptions associated with clinically meaningful elevations in C-reactive protein (CRP)? • Results • Married men evidenced the lowest levels of CRP relative to women and unmarried men, OR = .56, 95% CI: .39, .79, p = .001. Logistic regressions adjusted for self-rated health, demographics, health behaviors, and psychological distress. Absolute Risk Reductions • Data • NSHAP, 1,715 participants (838 men) with CRP; average age of 69.50 years. Predictors of CRP Group Membership Sbarra, Under Review

  5. Study 3: Marital Separations in the Lab • Results • For SBP, independent effects for self-reported emotional intrusion-hyperarousal and regulatory effort during the divorce-specific challenge task. Interaction of interest: Time X Sex X Regulatory Effort (TRED). • Introduction • Among separated adults, how are divorce-related thoughts associated with blood pressure (BP) reactivity? • Data • 70 (26 men) recently separated adults (mean age = 39.5 years) completed multiple lab visits over a 9-month period. Systolic BP Systolic BP Sbarra et al. (2009)

  6. Synthesis • “Exciting findings”: (1) Marital status and mortality: Social selection or social causation?; (2) Married men are uniquely protected from clinically meaningful elevations in CRP; and, (3) Laboratory-analogue studies can point to potential mechanisms of action. • Study of social connectedness and health is ripe with aging-related questions. Next frontiers: (1) Social relationships and cognitive decline; and, (2) Can we improve health by altering relationships (Cohen & Janicki-Deverts, in press)?

  7. Thank You! Funding: NIA, R21 #028454 NIMH, R03 #074637

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