Predicting Dysphoria and Relationship Adjustment: Gender Differences in Their Longitudinal Relationship

Gender differences were explored in the longitudinal association between relationship satisfaction and dysphoria in 145 dating college students attending a large public university. Of the participants, 80% were Caucasian, 14% were African American, 3% were Asian, and 3% represented other racial/ethnic groups. Based upon a previous longitudinal investigation (F. D. Fincham, S. R. H. Beach, G. T. Harold, & L. N. Osborne, 1997) and recent theoretical explanations for the gender difference in depression, it was hypothesized that initial relationship satisfaction would predict later dysphoria in women but not in men. Conversely, it was predicted that initial dysphoria would be predictive of later relationship satisfaction for men but not women. Hypotheses were tested using hierarchical multiple regression analyses in which initial levels of the predicted variables were controlled. Whereas results supported the first hypothesis, initial dysphoria was predictive of later relationship adjustment for both men and women.