Comparison of Marital Satisfaction in the Elderly and Non-Elderly and Related Factors in 2012

Background: Marital satisfaction is a crucial component of emotional stability of couples and plays a vital role in the function of family and society. Therefore, investigating the causes and factors affecting this category is of particular importance. Objectives: The present study aims to compare marital life satisfaction in the elderly and non-elderly people and related factors in 2012. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on 257 men and women covered by healthcare centers of Kashan University of Medical Sciences in 2012. The instruments used included the ENRICH marital satisfaction inventory and the demographic characteristics questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS-16 and descriptive and analytical statistics (chi-square, independent t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Tukey post-hoc test). (P-value<0.05). Results: The results revealed that marital satisfaction in the non-elderly group (11.370±511.50) was significantly higher than the elderly group (10.296±901.55) (P<0.05). Examining the factors related to the level of marital satisfaction, it was found that the components of income level, occupation, and level of education in both groups were directly related to the marital satisfaction score. The number of children in the non-elderly group is inversely and in the elderly group was directly related to marital satisfaction (P<0.05). Conclusion: It seems necessary to make decisions to improve the factors related to marital satisfaction in the elderly as the elderly population is growing. Moreover, to achieve the standard levels of health, it is necessary to pay attention to all aspects of health in different age groups.

Keywords:

marital satisfaction , elderly , non-elderly