A closer look at gender and distress among the never married.

This study examines the relationship between gender and distress among a sample of never married and married individuals aged 18-64 years from the 1987-88 National Survey of Families and Households. The hypothesis that singlehood benefits women more than men in terms of economic and psychosocial resources, which then translate into lower levels of distress, was not completely supported. In general, single women and men appear more similar than different in resources, although gender differences in distress vary by age. The importance of recognizing conceptual distinctions among the single is discussed.