@article {8068,
	title = {Patterns of Widowhood Mortality},
	journal = {The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences},
	volume = {69B},
	year = {2014},
	pages = {53-62},
	publisher = {69B},
	abstract = {Objectives. Becoming widowed is a known risk factor for mortality. This article examines the magnitude of, explanations for, and variation in the association between widowhood and mortality. Previous research on widowhood mortality has revealed variation by socioeconomic status (SES), in that SES is not protective in widowhood, and by gender, such that men s mortality increases more than women s mortality after the death of spouse.Method. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, we estimated Cox proportional hazard models to estimate the association between widowhood and mortality.Results. Becoming widowed is associated with a 48  increase in risk of mortality. Approximately one third of the increase can be attributed to selection, in that those who become widows are socioeconomically disadvantaged. In contrast to previous studies, SES is protective for widows. Widowhood mortality risk increases for men if their wives  deaths were unexpected rather than expected; for women, the extent to which their husbands  death was expected matters less.Discussion. Widowhood s harmful association with mortality show how strongly social support and individual s health and mortality are related. These findings support the larger literature on the importance of social support for health and longevity.},
	keywords = {Adult children, Health Conditions and Status, Methodology, Net Worth and Assets},
	doi = {10.1093/geronb/gbt079},
	url = {http://psychsocgerontology.oxfordjournals.org/content/69B/1/53.abstract},
	author = {Allison R Sullivan and Andrew Fenelon}
}
@mastersthesis {6117,
	title = {Three essays on socioeconomic status, social support, and the Health and Retirement Study},
	volume = {Ph.D.},
	year = {2011},
	month = {2011},
	pages = {220},
	school = {University of Pennsylvania},
	type = {3500234},
	address = {United States -- Pennsylvania},
	abstract = {The associations between both socioeconomic status and mortality and social support and mortality are widely recognized, though the mechanisms that underlie these associations are less well understood. The Health and Retirement Study allows for a rich exploration of these associations. In the first essay, I investigate mortality differentials by both education and household wealth, first for all causes combined and then over seven different causes of death. Both education and wealth are strongly associated with mortality. I find that the SES gradient is strongest for lung cancer and respiratory diseases, and the gradient is weakest for cancers other than lung and cerebrovascular diseases. In the second essay, I explore how mortality risk increases upon becoming widowed, and what factors increase or mitigate that change in risk. I find that becoming widowed is associated with a nearly 50\% increase in mortality risk, net of demographic controls. Some evidence indicates that this risk increase may be due to consequences of adjusting to a new living environment, although some is certainly due to selection into widowhood. Factors that mitigated widowhood mortality risk included education and wealth; children did not have an association with widowhood mortality risk. A spouse may be an irreplaceable source of support. In the third essay, I explore mortality differentials by religion. I find that substantial differences exist, with Mainline Protestants and Jews having the most favorable mortality. Differences were partially explained by socioeconomic status. While Catholics, evangelical Protestants, and black Protestants benefit from favorable attendance patterns, attendance (or lack of) at services explains much of the higher mortality of those with no religious preference. Health behaviors do not mediate the relationship between mortality and religion, except among evangelical Protestants.},
	keywords = {Adult children, Demographics, Health Conditions and Status, Net Worth and Assets},
	url = {http://proquest.umi.com.proxy.lib.umich.edu/pqdweb?did=2609429601\&Fmt=7\&clientId=17822\&RQT=309\&VName=PQD},
	author = {Allison R Sullivan}
}
@article {5834,
	title = {Mortality Differences in Windowhood},
	year = {2010},
	institution = {Philadelphia, PA, Population Studies Center, University of Pennsylvania},
	abstract = {Being widowed elevates mortality risk, relative to married men or women of the same age. I investigate how risk varies by subpopulation of widows and widowers. Specifically, using data from the Health and Retirement Study, I test for differences in widowhood mortality by education, by number of children, and by how sudden or expected the death of the pre-decedent spouse was. Consistent with other studies, I find an increased hazard of mortality upon widowhood. In contrast with other studies but consistent with the larger literature on SES and mortality, education is protective in widowhood. Number of children has a u-shaped association with mortality in widowhood, with those having 3-4 children having the lowest levels of mortality after death of a spouse. Lingering deaths (deaths after a chronic condition) of the predecedent spouse are much for the surviving spouse than sudden deaths or other types of death. Important gender differences occur with each of these effects. These findings illuminate mechanisms through which mortality is affected by widowhood, and provide evidence on the power of SES and social support in vulnerable populations.},
	keywords = {Adult children, Health Conditions and Status, Net Worth and Assets},
	author = {Allison R Sullivan}
}
