Does working improve or undermine a couple's relationship The answer depends on a number of things One is the nature the wife's job Long hours frequent travel or demanding boss can spill over into family stress A second factor is attitudes towards the gender roles whether traditional egalitarian or transitional Employed wives tend to be happier and healthier than full-time homemakers particularly when their husbands approve of women working Not surprisingly marital satisfaction tends to be high among working wives with high levels of education who work out of choice enjoy their jobs and receive help from their husbands marital satisfaction tends to be lower among women who have low incomes from undesirable jobs Time together is a problem for most working couples The less time they spend together the less likely they are to be satisfied with their marriage