Deployment‐Related Benefit Finding and Postdeployment Marital Satisfaction in Military Couples

Extensive research has evaluated potential negative effects of military deployments on romantic relationships. Comparatively few studies have examined potential positive effects of such deployments. In stressful situations, benefit finding (BF) has been found to be linked with better functioning on both individual and interpersonal levels. This study reports on deployment‐related BF in a sample of 67 male service members (SMs) who deployed at least once since 9/11/2001 and their wives. Couples completed measures of marital satisfaction at baseline (an average of 1 year postdeployment) and follow‐up 4–6 months later. At follow‐up, SMs also provided data on symptoms of posttraumatic stress, and both partners provided reports of deployment‐related BF. Multivariate path analysis controlling for SMs' PTSD symptom severity revealed that wives' BF was positively associated with increases in SMs' relationship satisfaction. These findings suggest that wives' responses to deployment may be more influential than SMs' responses to deployment on military couples' relationships. This pattern indicates that support for spouses during deployments is essential; furthermore, such support should include an emphasis on trying to facilitate personal growth in spouses.     

Sacrifice as a predictor of marital outcomes

We investigated the prospective associations between attitudes about sacrifice and marital outcomes in 38 married couples. Specifically, a measure of satisfaction with sacrifice was proposed to be a potent longitudinal predictor of marital adjustment and distress based on existing cross-sectional studies and also to mediate the association between commitment and marital adjustment. Results demonstrated that attitudes about sacrifice discriminated between couples who would become distressed versus nondistressed over time. Sacrifice attitudes also predicted the maintenance of relationship adjustment over time even better than earlier relationship adjustment. Finally, sacrifice attitudes mediated the link between commitment and relationship adjustment for husbands, but not wives. Implications for intervention are discussed.     

Searching for the facts in the clinical setting with couples

This paper describes a research proposal to examine whether or not the underlying analytic concepts behind the couple psychoanalytic psychotherapy model used at the Tavistock Marital Studies Institute in London are sufficiently coherent, both conceptually and clinically, to be used as the basis for a system of audit which respects the unique data produced in analytic psychotherapy. This 'psychoanalytic' system of audit is one which is characterized particularly by the use of the therapists' subjectivity, rather than attempts to be objective and gather data through such things as random controlled trials or generic outcome questionnaires. The paper describes the approach to the subject and the mix of qualitative and quantitative methods used. As the Tavistock Marital Studies Institute has a history of contact with Jungian analysts from the Society of Analytical Psychology, Jungian concepts are included in the model. The research is part of a professional doctorate in couple psychoanalytic psychotherapy at the Tavistock Marital Studies Institute in conjunction with the University of East London, entitled 'Conceptualizing audit in Couple Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy'.     

DYSFUNCTIONAL RELATIONSHIP BELIEFS IN MARITAL CONFLICT

The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between dysfunctional relationship beliefs and marital conflict of nonclinical married individuals. Interpersonal Cognitive Distortions Scale and Married Life Questionnaire were completed by a sample consisting of 182 married men and women. As hypothesized before, dysfunctional relationship beliefs correlated positively with the number and frequency of marital conflicts and the level of tension felt related to such conflicts. Dysfunctional relationship beliefs indicated the highest correlations with the frequency of marital conflicts. The beliefs related to mind reading were negatively associated with marital conflicts of women. When individuals endorsed high dysfunctional beliefs, they experienced more conflict in their marital relationship and felt more stressful. In addition, individuals experiencing conflict on 10 out of 30 issues had high level of dysfunctional beliefs. In conclusion, the results of this study have demonstrated the negative consequences of dysfunctional beliefs on marital conflict.     

Indirect pathways between depressive symptoms and marital distress: the role of conflict communication, attributions, and attachment style

Previous studies have focused on concomitants of depression and marital distress in order to help explain the relationship between the two, suggesting that several variables, such as conflict communication, attributions, and attachment style, are associated with depression, marital distress, or both. Our contention is that the selected variables may be important mediators (hypothesis 1) or moderators (hypothesis 2) of the concomitance between depression and marital adjustment, exploring the direct and indirect ways in which depressive symptoms and marital adjustment are related. In total, 415 heterosexual couples were recruited, and a series of regression analyses was conducted to test our hypotheses separately for men and women. Results indicated that demand-withdrawal, avoidance, causal attributions, and secure, ambivalent, and avoidant attachment mediated the relation between depressive symptoms and marital adjustment in the female sample, whereas constructive communication and causal and responsible attributions were significant mediators of men's levels of depressive symptoms and marital adjustment. In addition, avoidance and secure attachment moderated the association between depressive symptoms and marital adjustment in the female sample, and causal attributions were significant moderators of the association between depressive symptoms and marital adjustment for men. Several conclusions and implications for theory and future research are discussed.     

Misinformation effect and centrality

Introduction and objectivesThe two objectives of this study are to examine the effects of the introduction of post-event information (correct and incorrect) on the memory of the central and peripheral aspects of a given situation and to determine the effects of this additional information on the level of confidence claimed by the participants regarding their reported memories.MethodOne hour and a half after watching a film, the participants were presented with three types of information, by means of open questions: leading, misleading and neutral. One week later, they carried out a recognition task, during which they had to assess to what extent they were sure of their answers.ResultsWhile the memory of the event was more accurate concerning the central aspects of the event than the peripheral elements, the misinformation effect appeared only in the central condition. In addition, following the presentation of incorrect information, the participants were more certain of their answers related to the central aspects.ConclusionThese results highlight the importance of taking into account the centrality factor in studies about the misinformation phenomenon.     

社会信念的自信判断:自我一致性模型的验证

采用重复测验的自信判断范式,检验自我一致性模型。项目一致性与项目共识性的分析表明:被试从大量共享的信念总体中抽取样本进行正误判断,自信判断则基于各个样本信念的一致性,并反映新样本做相同判断的可能性;建立在代表性样本上的判断有更高的一致性或共识性,信念建构的反应时更短且自信更高;项目一致性与项目共识性存在交互关系:高一致性的判断也是高共识性的判断。结果验证了自我一致性模型在中国文化背景下的存在。     

Discovery of a Partner Affair and Major Depressive Episode in a Probability Sample of Married or Cohabiting Adults

Prior research has found that humiliating marital events are associated with depression. Building on this research, the current study investigated the association between one specific humiliating marital event—discovering that one's partner had an affair—and past‐year major depressive episode (MDE) in a probability sample of married or cohabiting men and women who were at high risk for depression based on the criterion that they scored below the midpoint on a measure of marital satisfaction (N = 227). Results indicate that (i) women were more likely than men to report discovering their partner had an affair in the prior 12 months; (ii) discovering a partner affair was associated with a higher prevalence of past‐year MDE and a lower level of marital adjustment; and (iii) the association between discovering a partner affair and MDE remained statistically significant when holding constant demographic variables and marital adjustment. These results support continued investigation into the impact that finding out about an affair has on the mental health of the person discovering a partner affair.     

Parents en résidence alternée et relation coparentale : le rôle de la relation d’attachement entre les ex-partenaires et des variables liées au contexte de la séparation conjugale

A context–process–outcomes model was proposed to examined the effect of a variety of factors associated with divorce on post-divorce coparental relationship in a sample of joint physical custody parents with children aged between 4 years and 12 years old (50–50) (n = 38). Parents completed questionnaires evaluating quality of coparental relationship. This variable is analyzed through 2 indicators: the parenting alliance and the hostility. The results revealed that attachment between former spouses and the kind of legal decision emerged as significant predictors of coparental relationship. Contrary to our initial hypothesis, higher level of preoccupation was found to predict more supportive parental alliance. Implications for research and intervention are discussed.     

Emotion as a boost to metacognition: How worry enhances the quality of confidence

Emotion and cognition are known to interact during human decision processes. In this study we focus on a specific kind of cognition, namely metacognition. Our experiment induces a negative emotion, worry, during a perceptual task. In a numerosity task subjects have to make a two alternative forced choice and then reveal their confidence in this decision. We measure metacognition in terms of discrimination and calibration abilities. Our results show that metacognition, but not choice, is affected by the level of worry anticipated before the decision. Under worry individuals tend to have better metacognition in terms of the two measures. Furthermore understanding the formation of confidence is better explained with taking into account the level of worry in the model. This study shows the importance of an emotional component in the formation and the quality of the subjective probabilities.