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Alcoholic marriage: later start, sooner end
Mary Waldron1, Andrew C Heath, Michael T Lynskey
1Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, School of Education, Indiana University, 201 N. Rose Avenue, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA. mwaldron@indiana.edu
Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research
|January 20, 2011
Summary
Alcohol dependence (AD) is linked to delayed marriage and increased marital separation for both men and women. Genetic factors also influence these associations, highlighting the complex interplay between addiction and relationships.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral genetics
- Psychiatry
- Sociology
Background:
- Established links exist between alcohol consumption and marital status.
- Limited research has explored how alcohol use or disorder influences the timing of marital transitions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between a lifetime history of alcohol dependence (AD) and the timing and survival of first marriages.
- To examine these associations in a large sample of Australian twins.
Main Methods:
- Utilized survival analyses, specifically Cox proportional hazards regression models.
- Analyzed data from 3,575 adult Australian female twins and 1,845 adult Australian male twins.
- Focused on individuals born primarily between 1940 and 1964.
Main Results:
- Alcohol dependence (AD) was associated with moderate delays in first marriage for both genders.
- AD strongly predicted earlier marital separation among ever-married individuals.
- Heritable factors contributed to the observed associations between AD and marital timing/survival, with specific genetic influences noted for women and men depending on AD onset.
Conclusions:
- Alcohol dependence (AD) is a significant predictor of both the timing and survival of first marriages.
- Genetic influences play a role in the observed associations between AD and marital outcomes.
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