The authors examined the longitudinal course of affective illness retrospectively in 63 patients with social phobia and 54 patients with panic disorder. Significantly fewer (35%) of the patients with social phobia than patients with panic disorder (63%) had experienced at least one major depressive episode. Patients with generalized social phobia and patients with specific social phobia had comparable past rates of major depression (37% and 30%, respectively). The clinical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed within the context of current concepts regarding the development of depressive symptoms in patients with anxiety disorders.