Impact of Marital Quality and Alcohol Use on Health in Diverse Marriages

项目摘要/摘要 在美国，过度饮酒每年导致8.8万人死亡，造成近225亿美元的损失。 婚姻对饮酒有保护作用：已婚夫妇报告的饮酒量比未婚夫妇少 对口单位。配偶相互影响的一个途径是婚姻质量；婚姻质量是 然后与饮酒成反比。性少数人群报告饮酒率上升 与异性恋者相比，过去几乎所有关于婚姻质量和饮酒的研究都是基于 不同性别夫妻的经历。我们不知道婚姻是否保护了同性饮酒 夫妇和异性伴侣一样，这些过程是否遵循类似的模式 由两名男性或两名女性组成。有必要了解同性的婚姻质量和饮酒情况 婚姻为预防和干预方案提供信息，以减少性少数群体饮酒差异。 在拟议的项目中，波利特女士的主要目标是评估婚姻质量在相同和 异性婚姻与饮酒有关，以及这些联系对男性和女性有何不同 这些婚姻。她建议通过以下目标实现这一目标：(1)比较 同性和异性婚姻中日常婚姻质量与饮酒的关系；(2)确定 在相同和不同的情况下，加剧婚姻质量对酒精使用的估计影响的婚姻压力因素 性婚姻；(3)检查婚姻质量和饮酒对身心健康的影响 同性和异性伴侣的症状。 在拟议的研究计划中，波利特女士将解决重要的性少数群体健康问题 与饮酒和身心健康有关的问题。为了实现研究计划的目标， Pollitt女士需要在关系和健康、家庭人口学、肺炎病因学和流行病学方面进行培训。 酒精使用，和二元每日日记分析。该培训计划将正式课程与一对一培训相结合 一位与她的赞助商和顾问一起指导，以发展这些实质性技能除了 延长了她的出版记录，促进了她的职业发展，完成了 联邦拨款申请，并为她的独立研究生涯做准备。

Project Summary/Abstract Excessive alcohol use accounts for 88,000 deaths and nearly $225 billion in costs in the U.S. annually. Marriage is protective for alcohol use: married couples report less alcohol use than their unmarried counterparts. One pathway through which spouses influence each other is marital quality; marital quality is then inversely associated with alcohol use. Sexual minority people report elevated rates of alcohol use compared to heterosexuals, yet almost all past research on marital quality and alcohol use has been based on experiences of different-sex couples. We do not know if marriage is protective of alcohol use for same-sex couples as for heterosexual couples and whether these processes follow similar patterns when marriages consist of two men or two women. There is a need to understand marital quality and alcohol use in same-sex marriages to inform prevention and intervention programs to decrease sexual minority alcohol use disparities. In the proposed project, Ms. Pollitt's major objective is to assess how marital quality in same- and different-sex marriages relates to alcohol use and how these associations differ for men and women in these marriages. She proposes to address this objective through the following aims: (1) Compare the association of day-to-day marital quality with alcohol use in same- and different-sex marriages; (2) Identify non- marital stressors that exacerbate the estimated effect of marital quality on alcohol use in same- and different- sex marriages; (3) Examine the impact of marital quality and alcohol use on physical and mental health symptoms for same- and different-sex couples. With the proposed research plan, Ms. Pollitt will address significant sexual minority population health concerns related to alcohol use and physical and mental health. To accomplish the goals of the research plan, Ms. Pollitt needs training in relationships and health, family demography, the etiology and epidemiology of alcohol use, and dyadic daily diary analysis. The training plan combines formal coursework with one-on- one mentoring with her sponsors and consultants to develop these substantive skills in addition to lengthening her publication record, enhancing her professional development, the completion of a federal grant application, and preparing her for an independent research career.