Determinants of marital happiness and unhappiness rated by alcoholics and their wives.

Alcoholic husbands and their wives generally agreed that the major aspects of marital happiness dealt with the quality of interpersonal relations. "Undesirable vices (excessive gambling, drinking, etc.)" ranked first as contributing to marital unhappiness while their absence was ranked 27.5 by the husbands and 9.5 by the wives as contributing to marital happiness. The elimination of undesirable habits may resolve much marital misery but it does not necessarily follow that as unhappiness decreases happiness will increase.