Depression in middle-aged and older adults: the joint effects of marital status and neighborhood conditions.

Abstract

Objectives: Research on neighborhood variations in the health consequences of marriage is limited, although individual social relationships are embedded in social contexts. This study examines how the association between marital status and depression in later life differs by residential neighborhoods.

Methods: We analyzed merged data from the Health and Retirement Study (2010-2018), including both individual-level and restricted geographic information, and the 2008-2012 American Community Survey 5-year estimates. The analytic sample included 14,783 middle-aged and older adults living in the community. We used hierarchical linear modeling to estimate the odds of depression.

Results: Marital status and neighborhood conditions shape depression jointly. The differences in depression among marital status groups (ie married, cohabiting, divorced/separated, widowed, and never married) are more pronounced in underprivileged neighborhoods characterized by concentrated disadvantage and social isolation. Specifically, cohabitors experience a significantly higher risk of depression in neighborhoods with high levels of concentrated disadvantage, while the widowed experience a significantly increased risk of depression in neighborhoods with high levels of social isolation.

Conclusion: Findings underscore the importance of adopting a holistic approach that assesses both individual characteristics and neighborhood contexts in understanding later-life mental health disparities.