Relationship Between Accommodation Conflict Resolution Style And Marital Satisfaction Among Couples In Nairobi City County, Kenya

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Background: Marriage is considered necessary in most cultures, and is expected to build fulfilling relationships. However, world records show decreased rates of new marriages and divorce figures are still high globally7,11 . Culturally, married individuals achieve socially acceptable status and fulfill religious and cultural obligations through bearing children8 . Research carried out in Kenya12 indicates that 29% of respondents’ marriages were headed for crumbling and only 40% were happy with their marriages. Unhappy marriages may result in marital dissatisfaction leading to divorce. Divorces have profound consequences particularly in children7 . Hence there is need to curb divorce. Research on predictors of marital satisfaction posits that resolving differences and conflicts improves interpersonal skills. In addition, interpersonal skills correlate positively with marital satisfaction, while low marital satisfaction has been associated with marital dissolution. Divorce figures are still high in most regions of the world though some countries such as Germany and United States may have recorded a decrease in Divorce rates12 . Kenyan population census (2019) shows that persons who are either divorced or separated, headed 5.5% of the total households, which is approximately 661,628 households13. Research supports that conflicts and conflict resolutions are among the major determinants of marriage satisfaction. This study aimed to determine the relationship between accommodation conflict resolution style and marital satisfaction among couples in Nairobi City County. The research sought to establish whether Nairobi couples use accommodation conflict resolution style in resolving conflicts and its influence on marital satisfaction. Research assumed that inability to resolve marital conflicts amicably or to manage post-conflict experiences influences a person's perception of their marriage relationship. Studies on how conflict resolution styles influence marriage satisfaction are yet to be extensively conducted locally. Material and Methods: The research used a correlational study design. The target population constituted couples in 858,926 households within Nairobi City County. The households were identified from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS)13 . The study used Stratified and proportional simple random sampling to sample sub counties and households respectively. Data was collected using structured self-reported questionnaires. Modified Conflict Resolution Strategies Scale (CRSS) and Marital Satisfaction Index (MSI) were incorporated into the questionnaire. Results: Data was cleaned and analyzed through statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 23. Pearson’s correlation was used to analyze inferential statistics where results showed accommodation conflict resolution style had a weak positive relationship with marital satisfaction where, rs(398) = .179, p < .05. Conclusion: Use of accommodation conflict resolution has positive influence on marital satisfaction. The findings can guide to develop conflict intervention programs for couples.