• HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
Saturday, August 2, 2025
BIOENGINEER.ORG
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
  • HOME
  • NEWS
  • EXPLORE
    • CAREER
      • Companies
      • Jobs
        • Lecturer
        • PhD Studentship
        • Postdoc
        • Research Assistant
    • EVENTS
    • iGEM
      • News
      • Team
    • PHOTOS
    • VIDEO
    • WIKI
  • BLOG
  • COMMUNITY
    • FACEBOOK
    • INSTAGRAM
    • TWITTER
No Result
View All Result
Bioengineer.org
No Result
View All Result
Home NEWS Science News Health

Federal same-sex marriage ruling improved life satisfaction for individuals, study shows

Bioengineer by Bioengineer
February 27, 2019
in Health
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedinShare on RedditShare on Telegram

URBANA, Ill. – Until the U.S. Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges decision in 2015 provided federal recognition of same-sex marriage in the United States, individual state laws varied. Some states were clear on whether or not they would recognize the marriages of same-sex couples, and others were in an uncertain flux, in some instances legalizing, then backpedaling on the decision days later. Some married couples thus faced uncertainty about whether their union would continue to be legally valid.

Even since the ruling, recent news headlines have shown that several states continue to challenge marriage equality.

Researchers in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Illinois, led by associate professor Brian Ogolsky, intially wanted to understand how variation in state-level legislation and local community climate regarding same-sex marriage impacts the well-being and life satisfaction of same-sex couples across the U.S.

When the U.S. Supreme Court announced they would be ruling on same-sex marriage, the researchers expanded their project so they could evaluate the impact of the Obergefell vs. Hodges decision.

“Our key question was, does federal recognition improve the well-being of individuals in same-sex relationships?” Ogolsky says.

To understand the impact of the federal ruling, the researchers looked at levels of psychological distress, such as anxiety and depression, and life-satisfaction under the framework of minority stress–negative experiences made possible by stigma in the social environment. They collected survey data from individuals in committed, romantic relationships four months before the Obergefell vs. Hodges ruling, and then two weeks, three months, and one year after. Half of the sample surveyed included individuals in same-sex relationships (279), and half included individuals in different-sex relationships (266), the latter of which, in principle, should not have been affected by the ruling, Ogolsky explains.

Their first paper focuses specifically on the experience of individuals in same-sex relationships. The researchers traced how changes in the legal context of same-sex marriage in the U.S. affected the well-being of the individuals in these relationships. Looking at stressors unique to individuals in same-sex relationships, and taking into account that the social climate toward LGBTQ people across communities may vary, the researchers found that psychological distress dropped, and life satisfaction increased after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling. The findings held regardless of marital status. In other words, the positive effects of Obergefell were felt by individuals in same-sex relationships whether married or unmarried.

Further, Ogolsky and his colleagues found that those who were more distressed before the Obergefell decision experienced more improvement after the ruling.

“The most pronounced improvement was for those who were worse off in the beginning,” Ogolsky explains. “If you experienced higher levels of stigma related to sexual orientation before Obergefell, then you had a larger reduction in minority stress, and larger gain in psychological well-being, after the decision.

“We don’t want to overstate the findings and say that legalizing same-sex marriage made everybody in this country supportive. Levels of psychological distress dropped, but symptoms are still there. Just because a person goes from highly traumatized to less traumatized is not necessarily reason to celebrate, but it is a reason to feel that there is something to be said for public acceptance. It makes it easier for individuals in same-sex relationships to feel okay in their relationships.”

In their second paper, the researchers compared the effects of Obergefell on individuals in same-sex to different-sex (i.e., heterosexual) relationships. Findings show no evidence that legalizing same-sex marriage had any negative consequences on the individuals in heterosexual relationships. However, in discussing support needs in the paper, the researchers report higher levels of family support for those in same-sex relationships after the federal ruling.

“As family support increased, friend support decreased,” Ogolsky explains. “That is, if one’s support needs are being met by others, then needs in other domains decrease. It’s also possible that family support increased because marriage equality allowed heterosexual kin to see their LGBTQ family members as fitting into cultural norms of marriage.”

Ogolsky adds that it may be valuable to continue looking at the effects years after the ruling. “We need more time to understand how people are going to react and enforce these laws. We need more time to understand if they have lasting consequences. Now that we have national consistency, does it matter more what happens at the state or local level?”

###

“As the states turned: Implications of the changing legal context of same-sex marriage on well-being,” is published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships [doi.org/10.1177/0265407518816883]. Co-authors include Brian G. Ogolsky, J. Kale Monk, TeKisha M. Rice, and Ramona Faith Oswald. Ogolsky, Rice, and Oswald are all in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at U of I. Monk was previously at U of I.

“Personal well-being across the transition to marriage equality: A longitudinal analysis,” is published in the Journal of Family Psychology [doi.org/10.1037/fam0000504]. Co-authors include Ogolsky, Monk, Rice, and Oswald.

The study was funded by a USDA HATCH grant.

Media Contact
Stephanie Henry
[email protected]
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0265407518816883

Tags: CouplesDemographyMental HealthSexual OrientationSocial/Behavioral ScienceStress/Anxiety
Share12Tweet7Share2ShareShareShare1

Related Posts

blank

How Dopamine Influences Confidence and Choice Variations

August 2, 2025
Dental Stem Cells Differentiate on Biodentine Nanofibers

Dental Stem Cells Differentiate on Biodentine Nanofibers

August 2, 2025

2-Hydroxyglutarate Drives Brown Fat Whitening via Nuclear Softening

August 2, 2025

Special Collection: 2024 Aging Innovation Conference

August 2, 2025
Please login to join discussion

POPULAR NEWS

  • Blind to the Burn

    Overlooked Dangers: Debunking Common Myths About Skin Cancer Risk in the U.S.

    60 shares
    Share 24 Tweet 15
  • Neuropsychiatric Risks Linked to COVID-19 Revealed

    44 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 11
  • Dr. Miriam Merad Honored with French Knighthood for Groundbreaking Contributions to Science and Medicine

    46 shares
    Share 18 Tweet 12
  • Study Reveals Beta-HPV Directly Causes Skin Cancer in Immunocompromised Individuals

    38 shares
    Share 15 Tweet 10

About

We bring you the latest biotechnology news from best research centers and universities around the world. Check our website.

Follow us

Recent News

How Dopamine Influences Confidence and Choice Variations

Quantum Correlations Boost Dual-Comb Spectroscopy Precision

Flame Synthesis Creates Custom High-Entropy Metal Nanomaterials

  • Contact Us

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Homepages
    • Home Page 1
    • Home Page 2
  • News
  • National
  • Business
  • Health
  • Lifestyle
  • Science

Bioengineer.org © Copyright 2023 All Rights Reserved.