Marital status of persons with spinal cord injury

The proposition that persons are selected into and out of marriage on the basis of their health or disability status has often been advanced, but remains untested. This article presents a theoretical rationale for the proposition; provides an initial test of that proposition by comparing the marital status of a sample of persons with spinal cord injury with the marital status of the general public; and elaborates on the proposition by examining the extent to which other factors account for differences in marital status among members of this disabled group. The selected factors were sex, severity of disability (indicated by need for assistance, perceived health, and extent of paralysis), socio-economic status (indicated by adequacy of income and welfare status), current age, and age at onset of disability. A secondary analysis of existing survey data on 251 Oregon residents with spinal cord injury (182 males, 69 females) yielded the following results. The marital selection proposition was supported in that the marital status of this sample differed markedly from that of the general population. The disability exerted a greater effect on the marital status of females than of males. All the selected variables were significantly associated with marital status for one or for both sexes. Discriminant function analyses, employing these variables, identified correctly the marital status of 67.6% of the males, and 75.4% of the females. Profiles of married, formerly married, and single men and women with spinal cord injury are presented. Suggestions are offered for further testing of the marital selection proposition and for elaborating theory linking disability and health status to marital status.