The research reported here compared the extent to which relative deprivation, based on general social comparisons and perceptions of equity/inequity derived from specific comparisons in an intimate relationship, influenced the psychological well-being of men and women in one- and two-job families. Data were analyzed from interviews with 130 couples in one-job families and 135 families in two-job families. Beyond the discomfort and unfair treatment accompanying them, both relative deprivation and inequity were associated with depression when they were considered in the same model.
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