The Development of Neurosis in the Wives of Neurotic Men

Abstract

Complementarity of roles is chiefly responsible for the degree of harmony and stability obtaining in interpersonal relationships (Spiegel, 1957). Collins et al. (1971) compared decision-making in the marriages of a group of male neurotics and in a control group. They found that patient marriages were more often categorized as ‘segregated’ (where distinct areas of responsibility were demarcated for each spouse) or ‘husband-dominated’ (where most of the decisions were made by the husband). Conflict over decision-making was also commoner in the patient marriages. By contrast, the control marriages were more often co-operative (both partners collaborated equally in a co-operative manner). The authors suggested that the severity of the husband's neurosis led to the adoption of certain patterns of decision-making which in turn led to conflict. They proposed that these patterns of behaviour might partly explain the development of psychiatric symptoms in the patient's spouse. In a series of normal families in Australia, Herbst (1954) noted that as the percentage of separate decisions increased tension rose. The ‘syncratic’ family structure (comparable to the co-operative pattern) was below average in tension, while the ‘autocratic’ (comparable to the segregated pattern) carried the highest tension.