As has been noted throughout this volume, women are nearly twice as likely as men to experience depression in their lifetime (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987). Cross-national studies have demonstrated that this is true in both Western and non-Western countries (Weissman et al., 1993). As has been discussed elsewhere (e.g., McGrath, Keita, Strickland, & Russo, 1990; Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987) and throughout the chapters of this volume, there are numerous explanations that have been advanced to account for this gender difference.

This chapter is devoted to evaluating a social explanation for gender differences in depression; namely, that this gender difference could be due, in part, to gender differences in experiences in marriage. It has been shown that the potential exposure to marital distress and other negative relationship outcomes such as divorce is very widespread. For example, it has been estimated that within the United States, 9 out of every 10 Americans marry at least once in their lifetime (Kreider & Fields, 2001), that many people who do not marry will live with a partner in nonmarital familial relationships (Seltzer, 2000), that approximately 16–20% of individuals are dissatisfied with their marriages or cohabiting relationships at any given time (e.g., Hjemboe & Butcher, 1991), and that nearly 50% of recent marriages may end in divorce (Kreider & Fields, 2001).