This study examines differences in well-being among young adults across relationship status. Multilevel regression analyses on two waves of data of the Dutch Panel Study of Social Integration (N = 2818) show that singles have the lowest level of well-being, followed by young adults who are steady dating, and cohabitors. Married young adults have the highest level. These differences are partially mediated by differences between young adults in their access to valued material, personal and social resources. Furthermore, the availability of some resources is more important for the well-being of young adults in a certain relationship status than for those in another relationship status. Gender differences are also discussed.
Ahituv, A., & Lerman, R.I. (2005). How do marital status, wage rates, and work commitment interact? (Discussion Paper No. 1688). Bonn: Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
2.
Barrett, A. (1999). Social support and life satisfaction. Research on Aging, 21(1), 46-72.
3.
Bernasco, W., de Graaf, P.M., & Ultee, W.C. (1998). Effects of spouse's resources on occupational attainment in the Netherlands. European Sociological Review , 14(1), 15-31.
4.
Bowman, C.G. (2004). Legal treatment of cohabitation in the United States. Law and Policy, 26(1), 119-151.
5.
Bumpass, L.L. (1990). What's happening to the family? Interactions between demographic and institutional change. Demography, 27(4), 485-498.
6.
Carbery, J., & Buhrmester, D. (1998). Friendship and need fulfillment during three phases of young adulthood. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15(3), 393-409.
7.
Chipperfield, J.G., & Havens, B. (2001). Gender differences in the relationships between marital status transitions and life satisfaction in later life. Journal of Gerontology, 56(3), 176-186.
8.
Clarkberg, M. (1999). The price of partnering: The role of economic well-being in young adults' first union experiences. Social Forces, 77(3), 945-968.
9.
Coombs, R.H. (1991). Marital status and personal well-being: A literature review. Family Relations, 40, 97-102.
10.
Cutrona, C.E. (1996). Social support in couples: Marriage as a resource in times of stress. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
11.
De Jong, A., & Liefbroer, A.C. (1998). Schalen in het PSIN: Resultaten van schaalanalyses op gegevens uit een panelstudie [Scales of the PSIN: Results of scale analyses on panel study data]. The Hague, the Netherlands: NIDI.
12.
Diener, E., Emmons, R.A., Larsen, R.J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction With Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49(1), 71-75.
13.
Diener, E., & Fujita, F. (1995). Resources, personal strivings, and subjective well-being: a nomothetic and idiographic approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(5), 926-935.
14.
Diener, E., Suh, E.M., Lucas, R.E., & Smith, H.L. (1999). Subjective well-being: three decades of progress . Psychological Bulletin, 125(2), 276-302.
15.
Dykstra, P.A. (1999). De kenmerken en betekenis voor alleenstaanden van sociale netwerken [The characteristics and significance of social networks for people without a partner]. Individu en Samenleving [Individual and Society], 39, 7-10.
16.
Dykstra, P.A., & De Jong-Gierveld, J. (2004). Gender and marital-history differences in emotional and social loneliness among Dutch older adults. Canadian Journal of Aging, 23(2), 141-155.
17.
Erikson, E.H. (1950). Childhood and society. London : Imago.
18.
Eysenck, S.B.G., Eysenck, H.J., & Barrett, P. (1985). A revised version of the Psychoticism scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 6, 21-29.
19.
Frazier, P.A., & Cook, S.W. (1993). Correlates of distress following heterosexual relationship dissolution. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships , 10, 55-67.
20.
Galambos, N.L., & Krahn, H.J. (2008). Depression and anger trajectories during the transition to adulthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(1), 15-27.
21.
Gove, W.R. (1972). The relationship between sex roles, marital status, and mental illness. Social Forces, 51(1), 34-44.
22.
Gove, W.R., Style, C.B., & Hughes, M. (1990). The effect of marriage on the well-being of adults: A theoretical analysis. Journal of Family Issues, 11(1), 4-35.
23.
Hawkins, D.N., & Booth, A. (2005). Unhappily ever after: Effects of long-term, low-quality marriages on well-being. Social Forces, 84(1), 451-471.
24.
Helbing, H. (1987). The self in career development: Theory, measurement and counseling [dissertation]. University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam.
25.
Heuveline, P., & Timberlake, J.M. (2004). The role of cohabitation in family formation: The United States in comparative perspective. Journal of Marriage and Family, 66(5),1214-1230.
26.
Hills, P., & Argyle, M. (2001). Emotional stability as a major dimension of happiness . Personality and Individual Differences, 31(8), 1357-1364.
27.
Hinson Langford, C.P., Bowsher, J., Maloney, J.P., & Lillis, P.P. (1997). Social support: A conceptual analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 25(1), 95-100.
28.
Hobfoll, S.E. (2002). Social and psychological resources and adaptation . Review of General Psychology, 6(4), 307-324.
29.
Hofstede, G. (1991). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind . London: McGraw-Hill.
30.
Hope, S., Rodgers, B., & Power, C. (1999). Marital status transitions and psychological distress: Longitudinal evidence from a national population sample. Psychological Medicine, 29(2), 381-389.
31.
Hox, J. (2002). Multilevel analysis: Techniques and application . Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates .
32.
Hurlbert, J.S., & Acock, A.C. (1990). The effects of marital status on the form and composition of social networks. Social Science Quarterly, 71(1), 163-174.
33.
Huston, T.L. (2000). The social ecology of marriage and other intimate unions. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62, 298-320.
34.
Kamp Dush, C.M., & Amato, P.R. (2005). Consequences of relationship status and quality for subjective well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22(5), 607-627.
35.
Kessler, R.C., & Essex, M. (1982). Marital status and depression: The importance of coping resources. Social Forces, 61(2), 484-507.
36.
Kim, H., & MacKenry, P.C. (2002). The relationship between marriage and psychological well-being: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Family Issues, 23(8), 885-911.
37.
Kohler, H.-P., Behrmann, J.R., & Skytthe, A. (2005). Partner + children = happiness? The effects of partnerships and fertility on well-being. Population and Developmental Review, 31(3), 407-445.
38.
Korenman, S., & Neumark, D. (1991). Does marriage really make men more productive ? The Journal of Human Resources, 26(2), 282-307.
39.
Kosmin, B.A., & Lachman, S.P. (1993). One nation under god: Religion in contemporary American society. Retrieved July 3rd, 2007, from http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/tables/07s0073.xls.
40.
Lamb, K.A., Lee, G.R., & DeMaris, A. (2003). Union formation and depression: Selection and relationship effects. Journal of Marriage and Family, 65(4), 953-962.
41.
Liefbroer, A.C., & Fokkema, T. (2008). Recent trends in demographic attitudes and behaviour: Is the Second Demographic Transition moving to Southern and Eastern Europe? In J. Surkyn, van Bavel, J., & P. Deboosere (Eds.), Demographic challenges for the 21st century. A state of the art in demography . Brussels: Vrije Universiteit Press .
42.
Liefbroer, A.C., & Kalmijn, M. (1997). Panel study of social integration in the Netherlands 1987-1995 (psin8795). Utrecht: Department of Sociology.
43.
Lin, N., Woelfel, M.W., & Light, S.C. (1985). The buffering effect of social support subsequent to an important life event. Journal of Health and Social Behavior , 26, 247-263.
44.
Marks, N.F. (1996). Flying solo at midlife: gender, marital status, and psychological well-being. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 58, 917-932.
45.
Mastekaasa, A. (2006). Is marriage/cohabitation beneficial for young people? Some evidence on psychological distress among Norwegian college students . Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology, 16(2), 149-165.
46.
McCrae, R.R., & Costa Jr, P.T. (1986). Personality, coping, and coping effectiveness in an adult sample. Journal of Personality , 54(2), 385.
47.
Nock, S.L. (1995). A comparison of marriages and cohabiting relationships . Journal of Family Issues, 16(1), 53-76.
48.
Oppenheimer, V.K. (2000). The continuing importance of men's economic position in marriage formation. In L. J. Waite (Ed.), The ties that bind: Perspectives on marriage and cohabitation. New York: Aldine Gruyter .
49.
Penninx, B.W.J.H., van Tilburg, T., Deeg, D.J.H., Kriegsman, D.M.W., Boeke, A.J.P., & van Eijk, J.T.M. (1997). Direct and buffer effects of social support and personal coping resources in individuals with arthritis . Social Science and Medicine, 44(3), 393-402.
50.
Pugliesi, K., & Shook, S.L. (1998). Gender, ethnicity, and network characteristics: Variation in social support resources. Sex Roles, 38(3-4), 215-238.
51.
Reis, H.T., Capobianco, A., & Tsai, F.-F. (2002). Finding the person in personal relationships. Journal of Personality, 70(6), 813-850.
52.
Ribar, D.C. (2004). What do social scientists know about the benefits of marriage? A review of quantitative methodologies (Discussion Paper No. 998). Bonn: Institute for the Study of Labor.
53.
Rindfuss, R.R. (1991). The young adult years: diversity, structural change, and fertility. Demography, 28(4), 493-512.
54.
Robins, G., & Boldero, J. (2003). Relational discrepancy theory: The implications of self-discrepancy theory for dyadic relationship and for the emergence of social structure. Personality and Social Psychology Review , 7(1), 56-74.
55.
Ross, C.E. (1995). Reconceptualizing marital status as a continuum of social attachment. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 129-140.
56.
Rusbult, C., Johnson, D.J., & Morrow, G.D. (1986). Predicting satisfaction and commitment in adult romantic involvements: An assessment of the generalizability of the investment model. Social Psychological Quarterly, 49(1), 81-89.
57.
Scollon, C.N., & Diener, E. (2006). Love, work, and changes in extraversion and neuroticism over time. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 91(6), 1152-1165.
58.
Simon, R.W. (2002). Revisiting the relationships among gender, marital status, and mental health. American Journal of Sociology, 107(4), 1065-1096.
59.
Sprecher, S., Aron, A., Hatfield, E., Cortese, A., Potapova, E., & Levitskaya, A. (1994). Love: American style, Russian style, and Japanese style. Personal Relationships, 1(4), 349-369.
60.
Statistics Netherlands. (2005). Doorlopend leefsituatie onderzoek, 1971-1996 [Continuous study of life situation, 1971-1996]. Retrieved July 3rd, 2007, from http://statline.cbs.nl/
61.
Strohschein, L., McDonough, P., Monette, G., & Shao, Q. (2005). Marital transitions and mental health: Are there gender differences in the short-term effects of marital status change? Social Science & Medicine, 61(11), 2293-2303.
62.
Taris, T.W., Vaart, W. v. d., & Dijkstra, W. (1993). Nonrespons en representativiteit van de follow-up metingen [non-response and representativity of the follow-up measurements]. In W. Dijkstra (Ed.), Het proces van sociale integratie van jong-volwassenen: De gegevensverzameling voor de tussenmeting en de tweede hoofdmeting [The process of social integration of young adults: The data collection of the first and second measurement] . Amsterdam: VU uitgeverij.
63.
Van Tilburg, T.G. (1988). Verkregen en gewenste ondersteuning in het licht van eenzaamheidservaringen [Received and desired support with regard to experiences of loneliness]Amsterdam: Dissertation Vrije Universiteit.
64.
Waaldijk, K. (2005). More or less together: Levels of legal consequences of marriage, cohabitation and registered partnership for different-sex and same-sex partners: A comparative study of nine European countries (Working Paper No. 125). Paris: National Institute for Demographic Studies.
65.
Waite, L.J. (2000). Trends in men's and women's well-being in marriage . In L. J. Waite (Ed.), The ties that bind: Perspectives on marriage and cohabitation. New York: Aldine Gruyter.
66.
Waite, L.J., & Gallagher, M. (2000). The case for marriage: Why married people are happier, healthier, and better off financially. New York : Doubleday.
67.
Waite, L.J., & Lehrer, E.L. (2003). The benefits from marriage and religion in the United States: A comparative analysis. Population and Development Review, 29(2), 255-275.
68.
Waldron, I., Weiss, C.C., & Hughes, M.E. (1998). Interacting effects on multiple roles on women's health. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 39(3), 216-236.
69.
Williams, K. (2003). Has the future of marriage arrived? A contemporary examination of gender, marriage, and psychological well-being. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 44(4), 470-487.
70.
Wilson, C.M., & Oswald, A.J. (2005). How does marriage affect physical and psychological health? A survey of the longitudinal evidence (Discussion Paper No. 1619) . Bonn: Institute for the Study of Labor.
71.
Zimmermann, A.C., & Easterlin, R.A. (2006). Happily ever after? Cohabitation, marriage, divorce, and happiness in Germany. Population and Development Review, 32(3), 511-528.
