Simplifying the Complex Complicates Our Findings: Understanding Marriage, Singlehood, and Health
Using a sample of same sex and different sex couples, Umberson and Kroeger (in chapter "Gender, Marriage, and Health for Same Sex and Different Sex Couples: The Future Keeps Arriving" explore gendered patterns of marriage, marital quality, and health. Understanding the social and political milieu in which individuals, families, and couples are embedded is a critical component of family science, thus, upon reading Umberson and Kroeger's work, context immediately came to mind. Context was largely missing. This chapter focuses on context, and it also addresses singlehood longevity of married couples, and diversity. Although those issues are distinct, all could easily fall under the umbrella of context. Relationships are best understood when the context in which they are embedded is taken into consideration. A salient component of context, as related to the study presented by Umberson and Kroeger is generational effects; the sample consists of a mixture of Generation Xers and baby boomers These two distinct generations were likely influenced by the prevailing sociopolitical attitudes of their respective times regarding sexuality, sex, and gender roles. Generational differences in attitudes and beliefs can be stark, and therefore must be considered.