A pilot study of marital therapy as a treatment for depression

Seventeen depressed married women were assigned to marital therapy or a waiting list control group. The couples received 10 sessions of Enhancing Marital Intimacy Therapy (EMIT), a structured technique involving the self-disclosure of personal constructs. The marital therapy group had a significant reduction in depressive symptomatology compared to the control group in this pilot study. EMIT may be a viable treatment for women whose depressive symptoms are initiated by the loss of hope of developing a close, confiding relationship.