Family Status and Health Behaviors: Social Control as a Dimension of Social Integration

TLDR

Age‑adjusted mortality rates are higher for unmarried and nonparent individuals than for married parents, a difference usually attributed to social integration or support, yet the mechanisms linking social support to health outcomes remain largely unexplored. The study uses a national sample to examine how marital and parenting status relate to various health behaviors. It proposes that marriage and parenting provide external regulation and facilitate self‑regulation of health behaviors, thereby influencing health. Results show that marriage and having children deter negative health behaviors, indicating that family roles promote social control of health behaviors that affect mortality.

Abstract

Age-adjusted mortality rates are higher for the unmarried and nonparents than for the married and parents. The effects of marital and parental status on mortality are usually attributed to the positive effects of social integration or social support. The mechanisms by which social support or integration is linked to health outcomes, however, remain largely unexplored. One mechanism may involve health behaviors; the family relationships of marriage and parenting may provide external regulation and facilitate self-regulation of health behaviors which can affect health. The present study employs a national sample to examine the relationships of marital and parenting status to a variety of health behaviors. Results indicate that marriage and presence of children in the home have a deterrent effect on negative health behaviors. It is suggested, within the theoretical framework of social integration, that family roles promote social control of health behaviors which affect subsequent mortality.