Marital Desolation and the Evaluation of Everyday Life in Old Age

Interview data collected from a sample of 210 persons in Detroit, aged 60 to 94, were analyzed. A series of twelve items was utilized as a measure of four types of evaluation of everyday life. The main hypothesis tested was that relative isolation (desolation) as reflected in becoming widowed or divorced, rather than absolute isolation, which includes the widowed, divorced, and the single, is related to negative evaluations. On the whole, the desolate (widowed and divorced) were found to be more negative than the nondesolate (single and married), with long-term, widowed desolates approximating nondesolates in their evaluations. A distinction between positive and negative desolation, and the anticipation of becoming desolate are discussed.