Employment and Health Among Older Bereaved Men in the Normative Aging Study

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Abstract
Research has indicated that the negative effects of bereavement on health among elderly men occur within the first six to twelve months following a bereavement event while other studies indicate that the death of a loved one can have long-term effects on social functioning and mental health (Arbuckle & DeVries, 1995; Vinick, 1983a). However, employment has been found to buffer the strain produced by stressful life events. The purpose of this study was to examine the differential effects of employment on physical and mental health between elderly men bereaved for one year and elderly men bereaved for two to three years. We selected two groups of men from the Normative Aging Study: those bereaved within the past year (N = 248) and those bereaved from two to three years (N = 262). Ordinary least squares multiple regression analyses examined the direct effect of employment, controlling for age, education, income, marital status, and stress, on physical and mental health among the two groups of men. Although there were no significant differences between the two groups of men, the results from the separate analyses indicated that employment had a direct positive effect on physical health among those bereaved for one year and those bereaved from two to three years, but no significant effects were observed on mental health. The results suggest that employment can benefit men soon after a bereavement event and also over a longer period of time, especially on physical health. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.