Effects of difference in self-esteem between spouses on depressive symptom: Result from a data nationally representative of South Korean

Although there are many studies on self-esteem, no study has analyzed the relationship between depressive symptom and difference in self-esteem between spouses. We aimed to determine how differences in self-esteem between spouses are associated with depressive symptoms. We used data collected from 2011 to 2013 by the Korean Welfare Panel Study. The initial 2011 baseline data included 3257 married couples over 25 years of age. We used linear mixed-effects models, accounting for the longitudinal nature of the data, to analyze the associations between the self-esteem of spouses and CESD-11 scores. About 20% of the respondents had different self-esteem with their intimate partners. Individuals with spouses having lower self-esteem than self significantly higher depression scores. Individuals with spouses having higher self-esteem than self had significantly lower depression scores regardless of sex. Our findings show how different self-esteem with their intimate partners could be associated with depressive symptoms and imply that one's self-esteem could affect the mental health of one's partner. Therefore, we should give more attention to self-esteem, which can affect families and society.