With a wide-range of measures collected over a span of 25+ years (from 1989 to 2015) from families who experienced the “farm crisis” of the late 1980s, we investigate the influences of long-term marital and social experiences on health outcomes decades later. Furthermore, as of the most recent wave of data collection (2015, Later Adulthood Study, LAS), these couples have now transitioned out of midlife into their “young old” years (ages 60 – 70), a time during which physical health problems are generally more pronounced and health trajectories are established. Consequently, these findings have valuable implications for the formulation and implementation of interventions and policies designed to promote the health and well-being of middle-aged and older Americans.

Objectives

(1)    Participants will learn about the long-term cumulative influence of socioeconomic experiences of middle-aged husbands and wives on their marital and health outcomes in later years. (2) Participants will learn about the mediating role of dyadic marital processes linking early socioeconomic experiences and health outcomes in later years. (3) Participants will learn about the associated psychophysiological trajectories that link early socioeconomic experiences and health outcomes in later years. (4) Participants will learn about the moderating effects of individuals’ enduring vulnerabilities and resources (personality, genetics) on the association between socioeconomic experiences, marriage, and health outcomes.