Testing crossover effects in an actor–partner interdependence model among Chinese dual‐earner couples

The purpose of the present study is to examine the crossover effects from one partner's work–family interface (work–family conflict [WFC] and work–family enrichment [WFE]) to the other partner's four outcomes (psychological strain, life satisfaction, marital satisfaction and job satisfaction) in a sample of Chinese dual‐earner couples. Married couples (N = 361) completed a battery of questionnaires, including the work–family interface scale, the psychological strain scale, the life, marital, as well as job satisfaction scale. Results from the actor–partner interdependence model (APIM) analyses showed that wives' WFE was negatively associated with husbands' psychological strain, and positively associated with husbands' life, marital and job satisfaction. Furthermore, husbands' WFC was negatively related to wives' marital satisfaction, whereas husbands' WFE was positively related to wives' marital satisfaction. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed, and future research directions were provided.     

Associations Between Participant Ratings of PREP for Strong Bonds and Marital Outcomes 1 Year Postintervention

After completing a relationship education program, collecting participant evaluations of the program is common practice. These are generally used as an index of “consumer satisfaction” with the program, with implications for feasibility and quality. Rarely have these ratings been used as predictors of changes in marital quality, although such feedback may be the only data providers collect or have immediate access to when considering the success of their efforts. To better understand the utility of such ratings to predict outcomes, we evaluated links between participant ratings and changes in self-reported marital satisfaction and communication scores 1 year later for a sample of 191 Army couples who had participated in a relationship education program delivered by Army chaplains (PREP for Strong Bonds). Overall ratings of general satisfaction with the program and the leader did not predict changes in marital outcomes 1 year later, whereas higher ratings of how much was learned, program helpfulness, increased similarity in outlook regarding Army life, and helpfulness of communication skills training predicted greater change in communication skills 1 year later. Higher ratings of items reflecting intent to invest more time in the relationship, and increased confidence in constructive communication and working as a team with the spouse predicted greater increases in both marital satisfaction and communication skills 1 year later. The constructs of intention and confidence (akin to perceived behavioral control) suggest that the Theory of Planned Behavior may be particularly useful when considering which Army couples will show ongoing benefit after relationship education.     

Marital satisfaction and conventionalization examined dyadically

Edmonds (1967) developed the Marital Conventionalization Scale to measure an apparent social desirability bias in marital quality measurement at the individual level. The original conceptualization of marital conventionalization has not been supported by subsequent research and conventionalization appears to represent another aspect of marital quality. This study investigated whether marital satisfaction and conventionalization are best conceptualized at the individual or couple level. A series of analyses suggest that these constructs must be interpreted as dyadic variables rather than simply as individual perceptions of marriage. Husbands and wives tend to report similar levels of marital satisfaction and conventionalization, especially among dissatisfied couples and couples with a high level of satisfaction.     

Dyadic Examination of the Influence of Family Relationships on Life Satisfaction at the Empty-Nest Stage

The aim of this study on determinants of life satisfaction in adulthood was to test actor–partner interdependence models among couples in the phase of the family life cycle following the departure of their children from the parental home. Using structural equation modeling, measures of family relationships, such as a person’s own and his/her partner’s marital adjustment, the amount of contact with children (and grandchildren, if applicable), and being a grandparent or not, served as independent variables to predict each partner’s satisfaction with life. A sample comprising 102 couples (of which 58 couples had grandchildren), all at the empty-nest stage, participated in the study. Results revealed that, for both husbands and wives, the effects of their own marital adjustment and the amount of contact with their adult children on their satisfaction with life were significant. A partner effect was also confirmed between wives’ marital adjustment and their husbands’ satisfaction with life. Furthermore, although being a grandparent did not predict higher life satisfaction for the whole sample of couples, the path between the amount of contact with grandchildren and life satisfaction was significant for the subsample of women who were grandmothers. Results are discussed in terms of the needs filled by these family relationships.     

Emotional intelligence (EI), conflict resolution patterns,and relationship satisfaction: Actor and partner effects revisited

This study tested for actor and partner effects in the relationship between ability-based EI and adaptive marital relationships and satisfaction employing a standard dyadic design involving 100 young heterosexual couples. Participants were assessed on the MSCEIT along with measures of conflict resolution patterns and perceived marital satisfaction. A series of path analyses provided support for actor effects—but not partner effects—in the association of EI, assessed as ability, and marital variables. Overall, the data provide only partial support for the common claim and some prior research suggesting that EI plays a pivotal role in marital relationships.     

Loneliness and Marital Adjustment of Turkish Couples

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between loneliness and marital adjustment in Turkish couples. Some demographic correlates of loneliness and marital adjustment such as gender, age, duration of the marriage, type of marriage, and degree of acquaintance before marriage were also examined. The UCLA Loneliness Scale (D. Russell, L. A. Peplau, & C. E. Cutrona, 1980) and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (G. B. Spanier, 1976) were administered to 58 heterosexual married couples. The results showed that loneliness was significantly and negatively correlated with marital adjustment. For the demographic correlates, significant results were as follows: Self-selected marriages resulted in lower loneliness scores and higher marital adjustment scores than the arranged type of marriage, and marital adjustment increased parallel to an increase in the degree of acquaintance before marriage. The findings and implications are discussed in the context of practice and research.     

The contribution of loneliness and posttraumatic stress disorder to marital adjustment following war captivity: a longitudinal study

This prospective study examined the relative contribution of loneliness and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to marital adjustment among Israeli veterans of the 1973 Yom Kippur war. Specifically, we examined the mediating role of loneliness as measured in 1991 in the association between PTSD as measured in 1991 and marital adjustment as measured in 2003. Our sample consisted of 225 participants divided into 2 groups: ex-prisoners of war (ex-POWs) (N = 122) and a comparison group comprised of veterans who fought in the same war but who had not experienced captivity (N = 103). The findings demonstrate that ex-POWs display lower levels of marital adjustment and higher levels of PTSD than controls. Loneliness was found to mediate the relationship between PTSD as measured in 1991 and marital adjustment as measured in 2003 for both ex-POWs and controls. Further, for ex-POWs, loneliness contributes to marital adjustment above and beyond the contribution of PTSD as measured in 2003. The theoretical implications of loneliness for the marital relationships of traumatized ex-POWs are discussed.     

The Longitudinal Association of Marital Confidence,Time Spent Together,and Marital Satisfaction

Using three waves of dyadic data collected at 18‐month intervals from a community‐based sample of 610 newly married heterosexual couples (1 220 individuals), we examined the relationship between marital confidence, time spent together, and marital satisfaction using a modified actor‐partner interdependence model. Results indicate that after controlling for marital satisfaction and time spent together at Time 1, marital confidence around the time of marriage was associated with marital satisfaction approximately 3 years later. In addition, marital confidence was associated with how much time husbands and wives spent together at Time 2, which was related to marital satisfaction at Time 3. Tests of the mediating paths from marital confidence to marital satisfaction trended toward significance. The results suggest the importance of assessing for relationship confidence when working with couples in the early stages of their relationship.     

Who gives and receives more? Older couples' personality and spousal support

This study examined the effects of the Big Five personality traits on support/strain exchange within older couples. Data of 1,775 older couples aged between 50 and 85 years in 2014 from the Health and Retirement Study were assessed, and actor–partner interdependent models were used. For the actor effects, all the five factors predicted their report on the spousal support/strain from the spouse; some differences between husbands and wives, as well as support and strain, were detected. For the partner effects, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism predicted the support/strain provision reported by the partner. The findings of this study illustrate that certain personality factors work as predictors of spousal support/strain in older couples. The possible mechanism with regard to older adults' personality and marital relationship was discussed.     

Spousal conflict resolution strategies and marital relations in late adulthood

In this study, we examined differences in the spousal conflict resolution strategies of husbands and wives in late adulthood among a sample of 76 married Israeli couples (N = 152). Using dyadic analysis (the actor–partner interdependence model), we examined the impacts of the strategies adopted by each spouse as well as their partner on evaluations of marital life as reflected in their assessments of positive and negative dimensions of marital life. The findings revealed that integration was the most prevalent strategy used by both spouses, whereas dominance and avoidance were the least prevalent strategies. Moreover, integration contributed most significantly to explaining assessments of marital life.     

Cooperation or Tension? Dyadic Coping in Cystic Fibrosis

Following a rise in the life expectancy of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients, many adults with CF form couple relationships. Yet, dyadic coping has not been previously examined in people with CF. This study examined how adults with CF and their partners cope as a couple with the illness, and what meanings each partner and the couple as a unit attribute to the experience. Seventeen adult CF patients and their partners participated in separate semi‐structured in‐depth interviews. Two main patterns of dyadic coping with CF were identified as follows: cooperation and tension. For couples in cooperation, the marital relationship served as a resource for adaptive coping. These couples were characterized by similarities in their perception of the place of CF in their lives and of their roles in the marital relationship. Couples in tension described the couple relationship as strained by difficulty of accepting the disease, proliferation of negative emotions, and a sense of burden and loneliness in the process of coping. Findings point to the importance of mutual empathy, clear and accepted division of roles between the partners, and open communication for facilitating coping as a couple.     

夫妻沟通模式与婚姻质量的关系

本文拟采用主-客体互倚模型(Actor-partner interdependence model,APIM)的方法深入探讨夫妻双方感知到的夫妻间的沟通模式与其自身及配偶感知到的婚姻质量之间的关系。以方便取样的方式在澳门地区选取130对成年夫妻,采用Christensen等人修订的沟通模式调查问卷(Communication Pattern Questionnaire,CPQ)和Spanier编制的婚姻质量问卷(Dyadic Adjustment Scales,DAS),要求夫妻双方分别以自陈问卷的方式报告其感知到的沟通模式和婚姻质量。通过配对t检验、相关分析和结构方程模型统计分析发现:(1)夫妻间的沟通以建设性沟通为主,双方回避和要求/回避型沟通较少;丈夫感知到的婚姻质量总体上优于妻子感知到的婚姻质量。(2)夫妻双方在沟通模式和婚姻质量的感知上具有一致性,在沟通模式中的两个和婚姻质量中的三个分量表上的得分不存在显著差异。(3)夫妻间建设性沟通可以显著地正向预测自身感知到的婚姻质量;而双方回避和要求/回避型沟通则显著地负向预测自身感知到的婚姻质量。(4)在控制了丈夫、妻子感知到的沟通模式对其自身婚姻质量的主体效应之后,丈夫感知到的沟通模式可以显著地预测妻子感受到的婚姻质量;然而妻子感知到的沟通模式并不能显著地预测丈夫的婚姻质量。     

Parenting stress and marital relationship as determinants of mothers' and fathers' parenting

Using the actor–partner interdependence model, we explore how various sources of stress and support experienced by fathers and mothers influence their own parenting styles and the parenting styles of the partner. Data from 227 couples were analyzed, with mothers and fathers rating their parenting stress and marital relationship and children rating the parenting styles of both mothers and fathers. Structural equation models revealed actor effects of parenting stress on demanding and responsive parenting styles, as well as partner effects between positive aspects of marital relationship and responsive parenting style. The results further indicate that the strength of these pathways is similar for both mothers and fathers and do not support the hypothesis that the parenting of fathers is more vulnerable than the parenting of mothers.     

The importance of the organization of partner knowledge in understanding perceptions of relationship quality and conflict resolution behavior in married couples

This research investigated how the organization of partner knowledge was related to global relationship evaluations and specific interpersonal behaviors in a sample of 107 married couples. Spouses first completed several questionnaires and later participated in a 12-min videotaped conflict resolution task. As expected, wives in older relationships exhibited greater marital quality (self-reported and observed) when they had (a) an integrative knowledge structure and used many negative traits to describe their spouse or (b) a compartmentalized knowledge structure and used few negative traits to describe their spouse. Greater marital quality, however, was found for husbands when they were (a) in older relationships and possessed an integrative structure or (b) in newer relationships and possessed a compartmentalized structure. Exploratory analyses suggested that in some circumstances people may have greater marital quality when they share an organizational style with their spouse.     

The nature and predictors of the trajectory of change in marital quality for husbands and wives over the first 10 years of marriage.

Four parameters of the trajectory of change in marital quality (initial status as well as linear, quadratic, and cubic patterns of change) were estimated for husbands and wives over the first 10 years of marriage (n = 522 couples at Year 1 and 93 couples at Year 10). Both husbands and wives started their trajectories of change at fairly high levels of marital quality and showed a cubic pattern of change such that marital quality declined fairly rapidly in the early years of marriage, stabilized, and then declined again. Whereas individual-differences variables predicted the initial status of the trajectory, husbands and wives living with only their biological children showed a steeper decline in marital quality than husbands and wives living without children or stepchildren.     

澳门和东北地区夫妻沟通模式与婚姻满意度研究

采用问卷调查法对澳门（118对）和东北地区（266对）夫妻进行研究,以检验两地夫妻沟通模式的差异,及其对婚姻满意度的主客体效应。结果发现：澳门夫妻双方回避沟通显著少于东北夫妻;两地夫妻报告的妻子要求/丈夫回避行为多于丈夫要求/妻子回避行为;建设性沟通对两地夫妻婚姻满意度正向预测力最强;要求/回避沟通只对澳门夫妻的婚姻满意度有负向预测力。两地妻子的建设性沟通都能显著正向预测丈夫的婚姻满意度,而只有东北地区丈夫的建设性沟通能正向预测妻子婚姻满意度。     

夫妻依恋风格、婚姻归因与婚姻质量的关系

本研究采用主—客体互倚模型(actor-partner interdependence model,APIM)的方法深入探讨夫妻的依恋风格、婚姻归因与自身及配偶感知到的婚姻质量之间的关系。以方便取样的方式在北京地区选取155对夫妻,采用Brennan等(1998)编制的亲密关系经历量表(ECR),Stander编制的婚姻归因量表(MAQ)和Spanier编制的婚姻质量问卷(DAS),要求夫妻双方分别报告其依恋风格、婚姻归因方式和感知到的婚姻质量。通过配对t检验、相关分析和结构方程模型分析发现:(1)夫妻对婚姻质量的总体知觉较为一致,但丈夫的婚姻满意度显著高于妻子;(2)夫妻双方在回避依恋和焦虑依恋两个分量表上不存在显著差异,但在婚姻归因上,妻子比丈夫表现出了更多的消极归因;(3)妻子的消极依恋显著地负向预测自身感知到的婚姻质量,而丈夫的消极依恋对自身感知到的婚姻质量没有显著影响;(4)在控制了丈夫、妻子的依恋风格、归因方式对其自身婚姻质量的主体效应之后,丈夫的依恋风格不能显著预测妻子感受到的婚姻质量,但其归因方式可以显著地预测妻子感受到的婚姻质量;然而妻子的归因方式并不能显著预测丈夫的婚姻质量。     

Impulsivity,communication, and marital satisfaction in newlywed couples

The authors used a vulnerability–stress–adaptation framework to examine how and why impulsivity affects communication and marital satisfaction in a sample of 100 newlywed couples. We specifically examined the links between impulsivity and perceptions of conflict communication patterns and their associations with marital satisfaction. Using an actor–partner interdependence framework, the results demonstrated that impulsivity was negatively associated with one's own and partner's marital satisfaction. Impulsivity was also negatively associated with constructive communication and positively associated with destructive communication. Furthermore, mediation analyses showed that communication patterns mediated the impulsivity–satisfaction link. Taken together, these findings suggest that impulsivity is likely to lead to lower marital satisfaction, partly through its effect on communication between partners.     

Marital satisfaction and topographical assessment of marital interaction: A longitudinal analysis of newlywed couples

Despite numerous tests of social learning hypotheses relating to marriage, important questions remain concerning how best to quantify behavior displayed in marital interaction. In the present study, 60 newlywed couples reported their marital satisfaction, engaged in a 15-minute problem-solving discussion, and reported their marital satisfaction again 6 and 12 months later. The interactions were microanalytically coded, the codes were assigned a numeric value, and each spouse's cumulative point totals were plotted as a function of time in the interaction. This was done separately for all 60 couples. Graphs were divided into groups based on the topography of the graphically represented interactions. These groups differed cross-sectionally and longitudinally in their level of marital satisfaction. Couples tended to have lower satisfaction scores when their initial interactions were characterized with behavioral parity between the spouses at the beginning of a discussion, changing to asymmetrical patterns of behavior later in the conversation. This method was found to be more predictive of marital satisfaction than were standard methods of assessing dyadic interaction (i.e., base rates of behavior and sequential analysis). Implications of these data for understanding how interactions relate to the course of newlywed marriage are discussed.     

Longitudinal relations between forgiveness and conflict resolution in marriage.

Does forgiveness predict later conflict resolution in married couples? Twelve-month follow-up data on conflict resolution were collected from the couples studied by F. D. Fincham, S. R. Beach, and J. Davila, who had provided earlier reports of forgiveness and conflict resolution. For wives, the positive dimension of forgiveness or benevolence predicted husbands' later reports of better conflict resolution controlling for initial levels of conflict resolution. This finding was independent of wives' marital satisfaction and the degree of hurt engendered by husbands' transgressions. For husbands, the only predictor of wives' reports of later conflict resolution was initial level of conflict resolution. The findings are discussed in terms of the direction of effect between forgiveness and conflict resolution and of the mechanisms that might link them.