Why marriage matters most for Australian retirees
Last updated on 13 March 2024
Key points:
- There were 127,161 marriages registered in Australia in 2022, the highest number on record
- In 1975, only 16 percent of marriages were preceded by cohabitation — by 2017, 81 percent of couples had been living together before marriage
- The median age at marriage has increased to 32.5 years for males and 30.9 years for females
Reported marital harmony or conflict accounted for nearly 10 percent of the variation in mental health self-assessments in a broad study of Australian adults. Finances and general demographics accounted for three and two percent of this mental health variation, respectively.
As such, it’s important to weather the storm with someone you love, according to a new study published in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Bernard Kwadwo Yeboah Asiamah-Asare and colleagues.
The study found that Australian adults who report a good relationship that meets their original expectations tend to score higher in mental health, while adults who report loving their spouse but wished they had never entered the relationship and note relationship problems tend to score significantly lower in mental health.
Yeboah Asiamah-Asare and colleagues looked specifically at how one’s marriage or past marital experiences may interact with self-described financial problems and mental health status.
The authors assessed data gathered from 6,846 Australian adults responding to the most recent iteration of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey.
The respondents were mostly older than 42, born in Australia and married, with an almost even gender split. Approximately seven percent had poor mental health as indicated by the survey.
Those over the age of 60 tended to have greater mental health than other demographics, with retirees, migrants, people born female and students all reporting worse mental health.
Three percent of the variation in mental health scores could be linked to financial difficulty, with participants who said ‘yes’ when asked if they experienced difficulties paying utility bills on time, pawned or sold some belongings, sought financial help from friends/family or sought help from welfare/community organisations tending to score lower on mental health.
Marriage and relationship perceptions accounted for 10 percent of the variation in mental health scores, with participants who perceived their relationships as good and meeting their original expectations tending to have higher mental health scores.
However, those with negative perceptions of their relationships were likely to have poorer mental health and researchers noted that relationship difficulties even in couples that eventually found love for one another was an unexpected finding.
The authors of the study explained that more analyses were needed to figure out how marriage intersects with mental health.
“There is a need for more policy attention toward the social determinants of poor mental health, especially nuptiality or relationship perceptions, which have received less policy and research attention in Australia,” noted the authors.
In December of 2023, Australian Seniors released a report about relationship and marital satisfaction for those over the age of 50 which claimed that the biggest contributors to ‘grey divorce’ or separation were:
- empty nest syndrome, according to 48 percent of respondents;
- increased financial pressures, according to 35 percent of respondents;
- retirement adjustments, according to 34 percent of respondents.
Additionally, the biggest contributing factors to relationship survival and satisfaction were:
- trust and loyalty, according to 77 percent of respondents;
- mutual respect, according to 71 percent of respondents;
- open, honest and respectful communication, according to 66 percent of respondents.
Close to nine in 10 over 50s in a relationship feel comfortable discussing finances with their current partner. The most common shared finances for those in a relationship are shared assets such as property, a will or estate planning and joint accounts.
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