Partner's unemployment and subjective well-being: The mediating role of relationship functioning
Voßemer,J. Baranowska-Rataj,A. Heyne,S. Loter,K.
Voßemer,J.
Baranowska-Rataj,A.
Heyne,S.
Loter,K.
Abstract
Unemployment affects not only the subjective well-being of the individual, but also that of the partner. Based on the life course perspective and the spillover-crossover-model, we examine the mediating role of relationship functioning for such crossover effects of partner's unemployment on subjective well-being. We also test whether gender differences in the mechanism of relationship functioning can explain the larger overall crossover effects on women compared to men. We use data from the German Family Panel pairfam (2008/09–2018/19), which provide more direct and comprehensive measures of relationship functioning than previous research, and allow us to examine couples’ communication and interactions, their conflict styles and behaviors, relationship satisfaction, and perceived relationship instability as mediators. To analyze the impact of the partner's transition to unemployment on subjective well-being, we use fixed effects panel regression models and the product method of mediation analysis to estimate the indirect effects of relationship functioning. The results show that a partner's transition to unemployment has a negative impact on one's own well-being. The effects are more pronounced for women than men which can be partly explained by gender-specific effects of the partner's unemployment on various aspects of relationship functioning, rather than by differential effects of the latter on one's own well-being.
Description
Date
2024
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Research Projects
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Journal Issue
Keywords
Crossover-spillover effects, Fixed-effects models, Mediation analysis, Relationship functioning, Subjective well-being, Unemployment
Citation
Voßemer, J, Baranowska-Rataj, A, Heyne, S & Loter, K 2024, 'Partner's unemployment and subjective well-being : The mediating role of relationship functioning', Advances in Life Course Research, vol. 60, 100606. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcr.2024.100606
License
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess