ArticleJournal of psychosomatic research2014
Are people healthier if their partners are more optimistic? The dyadic effect of optimism on health among older adults.
Article in Journal of psychosomatic research, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 58 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mapping demographic variations in sense of mastery across the world a cross-national analysis of 22 countries in the global flourishing study.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Household members' positive personality traits and age stereotypes do not predict perceived expectations for active aging.European journal of ageing · 2025Article
- Factors Influencing Social Isolation among Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Longitudinal Dyadic Effects of Aging Self-Perceptions on Health.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2021Article
- The association between actor/partner optimism and cognitive functioning among older couples.Journal of personality · 2020Article
- Memory, Mood, and Marriage: Examining the Interplay in Older Adults.The American journal of geriatric psychiatry : official journal of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry · 2018Article
- Linked Lives: Dyadic Associations of Mastery Beliefs With Health (Behavior) and Health (Behavior) Change Among Older Partners.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2018Article
- An examination of dyadic changes in optimism and physical health over time.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2018Article
- Alcohol and tobacco consumption concordance and its correlates in older couples in Latin America.Geriatrics & gerontology international · 2017Article
- Epidemiology of self-rated health in rural China: a population-based cross-sectional study.Scientific reports · 2017Article
- Compensatory Conscientiousness Redux: A Direct Replication of Roberts, Smith, Jackson, and Edmonds (2009).Social psychological and personality science · 2017Article
- What's Mine is Yours: Evaluation of Shared Well-Being Among Married Couples and the Dyadic Influence on Individual Well-Being Change.Journal of occupational and environmental medicine · 2017Article
- The Benefits of Social Technology Use Among Older Adults Are Mediated by Reduced Loneliness.Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking · 2016Article
- Changes in Optimism Are Associated with Changes in Health Over Time Among Older Adults.Social psychological and personality science · 2015Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveOptimism has been linked with an array of positive health outcomes at the individual level. However, researchers have not examined how a spouse's optimism might impact an individual's health. We hypothesized that being optimistic (and having an optimistic spouse) would both be associated with better health.
methodsParticipants were 3940 adults (1970 couples) from the Health and Retirement Study, a nationally representative panel study of American adults over the age of 50. Participants were tracked for four years and outcomes included: physical functioning, self-rated health, and number of chronic illnesses. We analyzed the dyadic data using the actor-partner interdependence model.
resultsAfter controlling for several psychological and demographic factors, a person's own optimism and their spouse's optimism predicted better self-rated health and physical functioning (bs = .08-.25, ps<.01). More optimistic people also reported better physical functioning (b = -.11, p<.01) and fewer chronic illnesses (b=-.01, p<.05) over time. Further, having an optimistic spouse uniquely predicted better physical functioning (b = -.09, p<.01) and fewer chronic illnesses (b = -.01, p<.05) over time. The strength of the relationship between optimism and health did not diminish over time.
conclusionsBeing optimistic and having an optimistic spouse were both associated with better health. Examining partner effects is important because such analyses reveal the unique role that spouses play in promoting health. These findings may have important implications for future health interventions.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.