Marital status and depression among Mexican Americans

Using data from a three-generations study of Mexican Americans in San Antonio, the authors found that, in general, women and unmarried (widowed or divorced-separated) persons had significantly higher scores on the CES-D depression scale than men and married persons even after a number of controls were introduced. However, marital status did not matter in the older generation and divorce-separation lost significance in the third generation after the controls. The authors discuss the findings in light of the place of the elderly in the Mexican American family and in light of rising divorce rates in younger generations.