The Impact of Depressive Illness on Spouses of Depressed Patients

Abstract

This study examines the impact of major depressive illness on spouses of depressed patients. The aim of the study was to attempt to conceptualize the gender differences in the manner in which spouses experience their partnera’s disorder. Forty-eight spouses of depressed patients (22 females and 26 males) and 48 married couples with no mental health diagnosis were selected to participate in this study. The occurrence of depressive symptoms was assessed through the use of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Thinking styles were assessed using the Rosenberg Scale (RS), Hopelessness Scale (HS), and the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire (ATQ). Perception of the marital relationships was evaluated with the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) Results indicate more depressive symptomatology and distorted thinking patterns with the female spouses of depressed patients. The perceived quality of marital relationships by female spouses was rated to be poorer than that of male counterparts and controls. The results suggest that there exist clear differences in thinking style and perception of marital relationships between female and male spouses who are married to depressed partners.

Improvement in social-interpersonal functioning after cognitive therapy for recurrent depression

“…Joiner et al 1992 ;Joiner, 1999) from depressed persons' social interaction partners. Finally, discord in marriage and similar dyads correlates moderately with depressive symptoms (O'Leary et al 1994) and major depressive disorder is associated with poor overall marital adjustment (Stravynski et al 1995 ;Dudek et al 2001), including unpleasant interactions with the spouse or partner (Zlotnick et al 2000).…”

Depression: its trajectory and correlates in mothers rearing children with intellectual disability

“…Like many other health problems, it is a condition that affects not only individuals, but also families and societies. When spouses and parents experience depression, their marriages and children are likely to suffer in a variety of ways (Pound 1996; Gotlib & Goodman 1999; Birkerts 2000; Dudek et al. 2001); for example, depression is related to lower marital satisfaction both concurrently and predictively (Finchan & Bradbury 1993; Karney & Bradbury 1995; Beach et al.…”

Sex and death: the ramifications of illness and aging in older couple relationships

“…The effect on adult partnerships of the serious, chronic and life-threatening illness has recently become the subject of research (Dudek et al, 2001;Levkovitz et al, 2000;Priebe & Sinning, 2001). By contrast the impact on elderly partnerships of chronic mental illness is less well documented (Schneider et al, 1999 EUROCARE).…”