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theses

This study examined whether relationship factors were associated with spousal involvement in a partner’s diabetic diet. Specifically, I examined whether marital quality and marital length were related to the frequency of spousal engagement in health-related social support and two types of health-related social control. Gender was examined as an exploratory moderator. Data from two different data sets, using the same measures, were examined. Data for study 1 were previously collected from self-report questionnaires of spouses whose partners had type 2 diabetes and were over the age of 55 receiving care from one of seven university-affiliated clinics in southern California. Data for study 2 were collected from an online survey of spouses whose partners also had type 2 diabetes and were over the age of 55. Regression analyses were conducted to determine whether marital length and marital quality were related to each type of spousal involvement, controlling for gender, race/ethnicity, and co-morbid health conditions. Data were analyzed separately for each sample. Study 1 found that marital quality was significantly and positively related to all three types of spousal involvement, but study 2 did not find this association. Neither study 1 nor study 2 found an association between marital length and spousal involvement. No gender differences were found in any of these associations, although there were gender and racial/ethnic differences in spousal involvement. Given the inconsistent findings between these two studies, more research would need to be conducted to understand under what conditions marital quality, in particular, is related to spousal involvement in a partner’s diabetes diet.

ETD_9995

M.A.

Includes bibliographical references

doi:10.7282/t3-zsmj-9917

ETD graduate

The author owns the copyright to this work.