METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out in the district of Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Of the 1,200 women approached from membership of community associations, 1,002 (84%) completed the questionnaires. Severe life events Recent Life Events Questionnaire (Brugha and Cragg in Acta Psychiatr Scand 82:77-81, 1990) and psychosocial vulnerability (VDQ) (Moran et al. in Br J Clin Psychol 40:411-427, 2001) were used to measure vulnerability factors. Depression was measured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30) (Havenaar et al. in Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 43:209-215, 2008).
RESULTS: Single mothers had significantly higher rates of depression than those married (60.5 vs. 39.5%), as well as higher rates of severe life events and Negative Elements in Close Relationships (lack of support and conflict with children). However, married mothers had greater Negative Evaluation of Self. The two vulnerability factors were correlated to each other and to severe life events and social adversity. Logistic regression showed an interaction between severe life events in the material and relationship domains and joint vulnerability for depression outcome. The results are discussed in relation to the low recognition of psychosocial risks for depression in single mothers in Malaysia, as well as lack of appropriate services.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This qualitative descriptive study was conducted amongst married older adults aged 60 years and above. All interview responses were transcribed verbatim and examined using thematic approach and interpretative description method.
RESULTS: A total of 11 married couples were interviewed. Three major themes emerged: [1] Our roles in driving; [2] Challenges to continue driving; and, [3] Our driving strategies to ensure continued driving. Older couples adopted driving strategies and regulated their driving patterns to ensure they continued to drive safely. Male partners often took the active driving role as the principal drivers, while the females adopted a more passive role, including being the passenger to accompany the principal drivers or becoming the co-driver to help in navigation. Other coping strategies include sharing the driving duties as well as using public transportation or mixed mode transportation.
DISCUSSION: Our findings suggest spouse play a significant role in their partners' decision to self-regulate driving. This underscores a need to recognise the importance of interdependency amongst couples and its impact on their driving decisions and outcomes.
METHODOLOGY: This research was conducted on 1210 noninstitutionalized elderly Malaysian individuals with dementia. The effects of age, ethnicity, educational level, marital status, sex differences, social support, and having a partner on sleep quality were evaluated in the respondents. The multiple logistic regression analysis was used to predict the risk of sleep disturbances among the participants.
RESULTS: Approximately, 41% of the participants experienced sleep disruption. Further findings showed that ethnicity (odds ratio [OR] = 0.62), social support (OR = 1.35), marital status (OR = 2.21), educational level (OR = 0.65), and having a partner (OR = 0.45) significantly affected sleep quality (P < .05). Sex differences and age were unrelated predictors of sleep disturbances (P > .05).
CONCLUSION: It was concluded that social isolation and being single increased sleep disruption among respondents, but having a partner and ethnic non-Malay decreased the rate of sleep problems.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out among 1294 married Malaysian older couples who were randomly selected from all 14 states in Malaysia. The data were collected by trained enumerators using a set of validated questionnaires consisting of eight sections, namely sociodemographic characteristics, chronic diseases, perceived health status, life satisfaction, body mass index, disability status (World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule), social support (Lubben Social Network Scale) and sexual intimacy.
RESULTS: Having good social support (AOR 0.57, 95% CI 0.45-0.74) from family and friends were protective determinants against poor sexual intimacy in later life. Meanwhile, those who were aged 70-79 years (AOR 1.81, 95% CI 1.35-2.42), aged >80 years (AOR 35.49, 95% CI 4.80-262.18), women (AOR 1.47, 95% CI 1.13-1.90), non-Malay (AOR 1.93, 95% CI 1.50-2.48), received only informal education (AOR 1.81, 95% CI 1.35-2.42), had gastritis (AOR 2.62, 95% CI 1.58-4.34), had a stroke (AOR 3.83, 95% CI 1.04-14.12), perceived their current health status was satisfactory (AOR 1.52, 95% CI 1.15-2.00) and disabled based on the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule (AOR 3.14, 95% CI 1.34-7.36) were at risk of poor sexual intimacy.
CONCLUSIONS: The majority of older Malaysian couples were having poor sexual intimacy despite being still married and sleeping with their partners, reflecting the presence of underlying barriers towards sexual intimacy in later life among older Malaysians. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 492-496.
METHODS: A systematic search was performed in MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Google Scholar, and ProQuest using search terms such as "marriage" and "polygamy." Studies published from the inception of the respective databases until April 2021 were retrieved to assess their eligibility for inclusion in this study. The Joanna Briggs Institute Critical Appraisal Checklist was used for data extraction and the quality assessment of the included studies. The generic inverse variance and odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using RevMan software.
RESULTS: There were 24 studies fulfilling the eligibility criteria, and 23 studies had a low risk of bias. The pooled meta-analysis showed women in polygamous marriages had a 2.25 (95% CI: 1.20, 4.20) higher chance of experiencing depression than in monogamous marriages. Children with polygamous parents had a significantly higher Global Severity Index with a mean difference of 0.21 (95% CI: 0.10, 0.33) than those with monogamous parents.
CONCLUSIONS: The psychological impact of polygamous marriage on women and children was found to be relatively higher than monogamous marriage. Awareness of the proper practices for polygamy should be strengthened so that its adverse effects can be minimized. The agencies involved in polygamous practices should broaden and enhance their understanding of the correct practice of polygamy.