Investigating the Relationship Between Marital Status and Ethnicity on Neurocognitive Functioning in a Rural Older Population: A Project Frontier Study
Jonathan Singer, Peter Rerick, Lauren Elliott, Carol Fadalla, Elisabeth McLean, Alayna Jump, Veronica Molinar-Lopez, Volker Neugebauer- Geriatrics and Gerontology
- Gerontology
- Clinical Psychology
- Social Psychology
Abstract
Objective
Research indicates being married is related to better physical and psychological health. Little is known regarding the relationship between marital status and neurocognitive functioning and whether it differs based on ethnicity (Hispanic vs. non-Hispanic). This is the first study to examine this relationship in a sample of aging adults in rural Texas.
Method
Data from 1864 participants (Mage=59.68, SDage=12.21), who were mostly Hispanic (n=1053), women (n=1295), and married (n=1,125) from Project FRONTIER were analyzed. Neuropsychological testing comprised RBANS, Trails Making Test, and Clock Drawing. Participants were dichotomized, married and unmarried.
Results
There was a significant interaction between Hispanic identity and marital status on overall neurocognitive functioning (F(1,1480) =4.79, p < .05, ηp2=.003). For non-Hispanic individuals, married individuals had higher overall neurocognitive functioning compared to unmarried individuals, whereas neurocognitive functioning for Hispanic individuals did not significantly differ between married and unmarried individuals. There were significant main effects as married individuals (M=84.95, SD=15.56) had greater overall neurocognitive functioning than unmarried individuals (M=83.47, SD=15.86; F(1,1480) = 14.67, p < .001, ηp2=.01), Hispanic individuals (M=78.02, SD=14.25) had lower overall neurocognitive functioning than non-Hispanic individuals (M=91.43, SD=15.07; F(1,1480) = 284.99, p < .001, ηp2=.16).
Discussion
Hispanics living in rural areas experience additional stressors that could lead to worse neurocognitive functioning, which is supported by the Lifespan Biopsychosocial Model of Cumulative Vulnerability and Minority Health, which postulates that race/ethnicity/SES-related stressors exacerbate the impact of other life stressors. Reduction of stress on rural Hispanics should be a priority as it could positively affect their neurocognitive functioning.