Article
An Exploratory Study on the Lives of Middle-Aged Women: Using the Multi-Indicator Multiple Causes (MIMIC) Model
| e-ISSN | 2982-6845 |
| p-ISSN | 1226-4474 |
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Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine if there are any differences in middle-aged women’s healthy life outcomes (i.e., mental well-being, marital satisfaction, mid-life crisis, and parental exhaustion) based on sociocontextual (i.e., social support, and employment status) and psychological (i.e., grit, meaning in life, parental calling) characteristics. Using the MIMIC model, the data of 430 middle-aged women (ages 50-64) with children were analyzed. Both psychological and socio-contextual factors are significantly associated with health outcomes in middle-aged women. Women with high levels of social support, in particular, had superior outcomes in all health-related variables. Grit and meaning in life, on the other hand, had a significant difference in mental well-being and mid-life crisis. Parental burnout and mental well-being were significantly accounted for by significant differences in parental calling in childrearing and employment status, respectively. The findings suggest that middle-aged women whom they know can effectively utilize psychosocial resources, such as personal beliefs, attitudes, and social support networks, not only successfully carry out age-related life tasks but also lead a healthy and happy life. We further discussed various roles that psychosocial resource factors can play in facilitating middle-aged women to maximize their health and mental outcome potential.