The association between trajectories of marital status and successful aging varies by sex: Findings from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA)

Abstract

This study examines the sex-specific impact of marital trajectories among older adults on successful aging to help social workers identify those most at risk for sub-optimal outcomes who may benefit from targeted interventions. Binary logistic regression analyses were used to investigate 7641 older Canadians who were classified as ‘aging successfully’ in the baseline wave of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. Men who were continuously married, continuously widowed, or became married between the waves were more likely to age successfully than their never-married counterparts. For women, marital trajectories played a modest role. Social work interventions are discussed.