How Does Marriage Affect Physical and Psychological Health? A Survey of the Longitudinal Evidence

Economists have for some time been aware that human beings reap financial benefits from marriage. Even after controlling for other factors, married individuals earn higher wages than single people (e.g. Chun and Lee (2001), Daniel (1995), Loh (1996), Reed and Harford (1989). There are gains, too, from economies of scale and specialisation within the family (Becker 1981). Yet economists are probably less aware of a body of research that finds wider benefits from marriage. Sociologists, psychologists and epidemiologists have recently documented evidence of married people’s better physical health, longevity (length of life), psychological health, and happiness. Married individuals fare better in these terms than the never married, who in turn generally fare better than the divorced, separated and widowed. Formal marriage itself seems to matter. In the few studies that compare married and non-married cohabiters, the results tend to show an apparent beneficial effect from being married. A common view also asserts that these benefits are larger for men than for women; pioneering work here was done by Gove et al (1983). Finally, some argue that the benefits to happiness may be declining over time, relative to the non-married (Lee et al 1991, Glenn and Weaver 1988).