Self-Silencing and Marital Adjustment in Women With and Without Depression

This study compared women with and without depression on self-silencing, marital adjustment, and depression. The study also investigated the predictive role of self-silencing and marital adjustment for depression. Two samples were recruited from various Psychiatric units and General Medical wards of different hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan including 80 women diagnosed with depression (Mage= 37.16 years, SD = 8.5) and 80 women without depression (Mage= 36.64 years, SD = 7.7). Using Urdu versions of Silencing the Self Scale (Jack & Dill, 1991), Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Spanier, 1976) and DSM-5 Cross-cutting Measure for Depression and Severity Checklist for Depression (American Psychological Association, 2013), the results revealed that self-silencing was significantly higher in women with depression than the other group while marital adjustment was better in women without depression than the women with depression. Depression was positively correlated with self-silencing and negatively correlated with marital adjustment for the sample of women with depression. Regression analysis revealed Externalized Self-Perception subscale of Silencing the Self Scale appeared to be a positive predictor while Dyadic Satisfaction and Dyadic Cohesion subscales of Dyadic Adjustment were negative predictors of depression. The study implied that psychologists especially couple/marriage counselors may need to focus on the communication patterns of spouses for decreased chances of depression.