Prior research indicates that the married enjoy higher levels of well-being than the unmarried, including unmarried cohabiters. Yet, comparisons of married and unmarried persons routinely exclude partnered gays and lesbians. Using a large probability sample, this study assessed how the well-being of partnered gays and lesbians (282) compares with that of persons from other relationship status groups, including legally married spouses (6,734); unmarried heterosexuals who are cohabiting (614), dating (2,992), or unattached (750); and single gays and lesbians (59). After controlling for demographic variables, partnered gays and lesbians were found to report less happiness than married spouses but more happiness than singles, regardless of sexual orientation. Conversely, no differences were found between partnered gays and lesbians and married persons in health. On both measures, partnered gays and lesbians were similar to heterosexual cohabiters. The implications of these findings are considered in light of current debates about the importance of marriage.
Beck, U., & Beck-Gernsheim, E. (1995). The normal chaos of love . Cambridge, UK: Polity.
2.
Bell, A., & Weinberg, M. (1978). Homosexualities: A study of the diversity among men and women. New York: Simon & Schuster.
3.
Black, D., Gates, G., Sanders, S., & Taylor, L. (2000). Demographics of the gay and lesbian population in the United States: Some evidence from available systematic data sources . Demography, 37, 139-154.
4.
Blumstein, P., & Schwartz, P. (1983). American couples. New York : William Morrow.
5.
Brown, S. (2000). The effect of union type on psychological well-being: Depression among cohabitors versus marrieds. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 41, 241-255.
6.
Cherlin, A. (2004). The deinstitutionalization ofAmerican marriage. Journal of Marriage and Family, 66, 848-861.
7.
Cochran, S. (2001). Emerging issues in research on lesbians' and gay men's mental health: Does sexual orientation really matter? American Psychologist, 56, 929-947.
8.
Diener, E., Suh, E., Lucas, R., & Smith, H. (1999). Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress . Psychological Bulletin, 125, 276-302.
9.
Giddens, A. (1992). The transformation of intimacy: Sexuality, love, and eroticism in modern societies. Cambridge, UK: Polity.
10.
Glenn, N., & Weaver, C. (1988). The changing relationship of marital status to reported happiness. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 50, 317-324.
11.
Gottman, J., Levenson, R., Gross, J., Frederickson, B., McCoy, K., Rosenthal, L., et al. (2003). Correlates of gay and lesbian couples' relationship satisfaction and relationship dissolution. Journal of Homosexuality, 45, 23-43.
12.
Gove, W., Style, C., & Hughes, M. (1990). The effect of marriage on the well-being of adults: A theoretical analysis. Journal of Family Issues, 11, 4-35.
13.
Green, R. (2004). Risk and resilience in lesbian and gay couples: Comment on Solomon, Rothblum, and Balsam. Journal of Family Psychology, 18, 290-292.
14.
Haring-Hidore, M., Stock, W., Okum, M., & Witter, R. (1985). Marital status and subjective well-being. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 47, 947-953.
15.
Harry, J. (1984). Gay couples. New York: Praeger.
16.
Herdt, G., & Kertzner, R. (2006). I do, but I can't: The impact of marriage denial on the mental health and sexual citizenship of lesbians and gay men in the United States. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 3, 33-49.
17.
Herek, G. (2006). Legal recognition of same-sex relationships in the United States: A social science perspective. American Psychologist, 61, 607-621.
18.
Horowitz, A., & White, H. (1998). The relationship of cohabitation and mental health: A study of a young adult cohort. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60, 505-514.
19.
Huston, A., & Schwartz, P. (1995). The relationships of lesbians and gay men. In J. Wood & S. Duck (Eds.), Understudied relationships: Off the beaten path (pp. 89-121). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
20.
Kamp Dush, C., & Amato, P. (2005). Consequences of relationship status and quality for subjective well-being. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22, 607-627.
21.
King, M., & Bartlett, A. (2006). What same-sex civil partnerships may mean for health. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 60, 188-191.
22.
Kurdek, L. (1991). The relationship between reported well-being and divorce history, availability of a proximate adult, and gender. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53, 71-78.
23.
Kurdek, L. (1998). Relationship outcomes and their predictors: Longitudinal evidence from heterosexual married, gay cohabiting, and lesbian cohabiting couples. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60, 553-568.
24.
Kurdek, L. (2004). Are gay and lesbian cohabiting couples really different from heterosexual married couples? Journal of Marriage and Family, 66, 880-900.
25.
Kurdek, L., & Schmitt, J. (1986). Relationship quality of partners in heterosexual married, heterosexual cohabiting, and gay and lesbian relationships. Journal of Family Psychology, 51, 711-720.
26.
Laumann, E., Gagnon, J., Michael, R., & Michaels, S. (1994). The social organization of sexuality: Sexual practices in the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
27.
Lee, G., Seccombe, K., & Sheehan, C. (1991). Marital status and personal happiness: An analysis of trend data. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 53, 839-844.
28.
Marcussen, K. (2005). Explaining differences in mental health between married and cohabiting individuals. Social Psychology Quarterly , 68, 239-257.
29.
Mastekaasa, A. (1992). Marriage and psychological well-being: Some evidence of selection into marriage. Journal of Marriage and the Family , 54, 901-911.
30.
Meyer, I. (2003). Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence . Psychological Bulletin, 129, 674-697.
31.
Nock, S. (1998). Marriage in men's lives. New York: Oxford University Press.
32.
Peplau, L. (1991). Lesbian and gay relationships. In J. Gonsiorek & J. Weinrich (Eds.), Homosexuality: Research implications for public policy (pp. 177-196). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
33.
Peplau, L., & Cochran, S. (1990). A relationship perspective on homosexuality. In D. McWhirter, S. Sanders, & J. Reinisch (Eds.), Homosexuality/heterosexuality: Concepts of sexual orientation (pp. 321-349). New York: Oxford University Press.
34.
Peplau, L., & Fingerhut, A. (2007). The close relationships of lesbians and gay men . Annual Review of Psychology, 58, 405-424.
35.
Ren, X. (1997). Marital status and quality of relationships: The impact of health perception. Social Science and Medicine, 44, 241-249.
36.
Ross, C. (1995). Reconceptualizing marital statuses as a continuum of social attachment. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57, 129-140.
37.
Ross, C., Mirowsky, J., & Goldsteen, K. (1990). The impact of the family on health: The decade in review. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 1059-1078.
38.
Stack, S., & Eshleman, J.R. (1998). Marital status and happiness: A 17-nation study. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60, 527-608.
39.
Waite, L. (1995). Does marriage matter? Demography , 32, 483-507.
40.
Waite, L. (2000). Trends in men's and women's well-being in marriage . In L. Waite & C. Bachrach (Eds.), The ties that bind: Perspectives on marriage and cohabitation (pp. 368-392). New York: Aldine de Gruyter.
41.
Waite, L., & Gallagher, M. (2000). The case for marriage: Why married people are happier, healthier, and better off financially. New York : Doubleday.
42.
Walster, E., Walster, G., & Bersheild, E. (1978). Equity theory and research. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
43.
Wayment, H., & Peplau, L. (1995). Social support and well-being among lesbian and heterosexual women: A structural modeling approach. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 21, 1189-1199.
44.
Weeks, J., Heaphy, B., & Donovan, C. (2001). Same sex intimacies: Families of choice and other life experiments. London: Routledge .
45.
Weston, K. (1991). Families we choose: Lesbians, gays, kinship. New York: Columbia University Press.
46.
Wu, Z., Polland, M., & Hart, R. (2003). "In sickness and in health": Does cohabitation count?Journal of Family Issues, 24, 811-838.
