Date of Final Oral Examination ii TABLE OF CONTENTS

Women (NLS-YW), this study examined the relationship between income and selfreported depressive mood in a national sample of 772 unmarried women aged 45 to 58. ANCOVA was used to compare depressive mood among three U. S. Census-based income groups (lower, middle, and higher) net of the effects of race and self-rated health. Mean levels of depressive mood did not vary significantly between women in the lower and middle-income groups, but were significantly lower in the higher-income group. Additionally, a series of multiple regression analyses was used to predict depressive mood in the total sample and the three income groups from nine sources of income, net of the effects of race, health, and total income. In the total sample, women who had income from labor had significantly lower levels of depressive mood than those not in the work force. Women who received alimony and hardship payments had significantly higher levels of depressive mood than those without income from these sources. Similar bu