Couple Relationship Education Programs Research Articles

Association between help-seeking and motivation for completing a couple relationship education program across service modality.

Levels of motivation and help-seeking impact the effectiveness of couple relationship education (CRE), as those with greater help-seeking and motivation are more likely to attend more sessions and remain engaged. Less is known about what impacts the association between motivation and help-seeking between partners in a couple engaging in CRE. The current study aims to examine (a) the effect of couples' self-stigma for help-seeking on their own or partner's motivation to complete the relationship education program and (b) whether the effects differ between service modality (i.e., online and in-person). We sampled 276 heterosexual couples who participated in a relationship education program. A multiple-group actor-partner interdependence model analysis revealed that women and men with higher self-stigma for seeking help exhibited lower motivation to complete the program in both settings. Higher self-stigma in men for help-seeking significantly enhanced the motivation of their female partners to complete the online relationship education program.

Couple relationship education content: What we have and what we are missing.

Couple relationship education (CRE) has decades of research showing mixed results for participants. Various competing frameworks for CRE content have emerged in the development of the field, yet content has not been systematically investigated. Through an inductive content analysis of 15 different CRE programs, this study explored content themes and categories that are common across programs. Analysis found four themes throughout the programs: interactional skills, the self in the relationship, partner bonding, and relationship motivations. Categories for each theme were identified and are presented and discussed. Findings validate the primacy of teaching interactional skills within CRE including consistency in topics (e.g., communication training, conflict management). Other themes were also common (e.g., self in the relationship), though their categories were more diverse (e.g., self-care, expectations, personality). Several factors that have emerged as more significant in relationship theory and research were not well-represented in the content analysis (e.g., socioecological contexts, systemic patterns).

The Illinois Strong Couples project: A proof of concept for sustainable, effective couples' programming

AbstractObjectiveThis proof‐of‐concept study presents findings from the Illinois Strong Couples project, a statewide initiative to disseminate an efficacious couple relationship education (CRE) program through a state Cooperative Extension System.BackgroundAmong family scholars, federally funded initiatives to disseminate CRE programming to couples have received strong support as well as equally strong opposition. The current study describes and evaluates a new dissemination approach designed to satisfy concerns from both sides of this debate.MethodThe sample comprised 340 individuals (170 couples) who participated in the online ePREP program with remote coaching and completed three survey assessments over 6 months.ResultsSignificant short‐ and long‐term improvements were observed in multiple dimensions of relationship functioning (e.g., declines in communication conflict, relationship instability concerns) and individual functioning (e.g., declines in psychological distress, sleep problems). Effect sizes, in general, were medium for relationship outcomes and small for individual outcomes. Greater attendance forecasted greater gains in relationship outcomes, particularly for men. Changes over time were generally similar irrespective of household income and, when evident, indicated greater improvement for lower‐income women compared to higher income.ConclusionFindings highlight the ability to disseminate effectively an evidence‐based CRE program within a state Extension system.ImplicationsThis project illustrates a sustainable and potentially scalable strategy to disseminate CRE programming that can complement other approaches for CRE dissemination as a means to promote relationship and individual well‐being among help‐seeking couples.

Adverse Childhood Experiences among Couple Relationship Education Participants: Exploring Influence on Program Impact and Testing Models of Risk and Resilience

The influence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) on couple relationship education (CRE) experiences has received limited attention. In a sample of 1478 adults in couple relationships, we tested whether ACEs moderated CRE program efficacy and found no interaction of ACEs and program participation on relationship quality one year later, validating positive impact regardless of number of ACEs. Results from risk/resiliency process models indicate that mindfulness and romantic self-efficacy are comparatively stronger predictors of concurrent relationship quality than ACEs, and positive shifts in self-efficacy influence later improvements in relationship quality, while considering the number of ACEs.

Healthy couple, better sleep: Exploring connections and changes in couple relationship education participants.

Considerable evidence suggests couple relationship education (CRE) programs are effective in improving couples' relationship functioning, yet few studies have examined the implications of CRE programs on indicators of physical health despite substantial research supporting links between relational and physical health. This study utilized a sample of 308 couples randomly assigned to a CRE curriculum to explore the dyadic links between conflict management and self-care skills (emphasized in CRE), stress, and sleep dysfunction concurrently. We prospectively tested whether changes in skills drove changes in sleep dysfunction or vice versa, for both self and partner. Results from a series of structural equation models indicated indirect links for men and women between conflict management and self-care skills and sleep dysfunction through lower stress level at program start. Dyadically, men's and women's better conflict management skills were associated with partners' lower stress, which was in turn associated with partners' lower sleep dysfunction. Men's better self-care skills were linked with partners' lower stress levels, which were linked with partners' lower sleep dysfunction. Tests of dyadic prospective cross-lagged effects among changes in sleep and changes in skills indicated that initial improvements in both partners' sleep predicted improvements in their own conflict management skills 1 year later. Initial improvements in women's conflict management skills predicted reduced sleep dysfunction for themselves. Additionally, for both partners, early changes in self-care predicted later reductions in sleep dysfunction. Dyadically, immediate improvements in men's self-care predicted reduced sleep dysfunction for their partner a year later. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Non-relative foster caregivers’ changes in mindfulness and couple relationship skills following relationship education

Foster caregivers experience many challenges related to fostering which, for those in a committed couple relationship, may impact the health of that relationship. Recent efforts have been made to provide couple relationship education (CRE) to foster caregivers to provide them with the knowledge and skills to develop and maintain a healthy relationship with their partner amidst the challenges of fostering. Further, recent studies have begun to examine changes in other skills that may hinder or promote changes in couple relationship skills following participation in CRE programs. One such parallel process may be changes in mindfulness, which may promote or hinder change in couple relationship skills following a CRE program. Guided by adult learning theory and utilizing a repeated measures actor-partner interdependence model (RM-APIM), the current study aims to examine foster caregiver couples’ change in relationship skills after participating in the CRE program ELEVATE and to examine how changes in mindfulness may moderate change in couple relationship skills. Findings suggest that both men and women report significant improvements in both mindfulness and couple relationship skills following participation in ELEVATE and that change in mindfulness moderates change in couple relationship skills for women.

Social influences predicting involvement in couple relationship education

AbstractObjectiveThis study explored the implementation climate of couple relationship education (CRE), specifically the positive role intimate partners, group members, and program facilitators have on one's beneficial involvement in programming.BackgroundFor CRE programs to be effective, participants need to be actively involved, yet little is known about social influences in the program encouraging participation in CRE. The perceived involvement of influential others was expected to moderate the relationship between intentions to participate and actual CRE involvement, with this involvement related to improvements in marital quality.MethodParticipants (584 men; Mage = 38.9 years and 627 women; Mage = 36.4 years) completed online surveys assessing study variables pre‐ and post‐CRE programming.ResultsPerceived intimate partner involvement contributed to better individual involvement and relationship quality for women with low intentions to participate in CRE, whereas both perceived partner and group involvement tended to have a protective effect for men's involvement.ConclusionThis study primarily demonstrates the importance of the perception of one's intimate partner's involvement in predicting individual involvement in CRE programs.ImplicationsDetermining predictors of program involvement assists with understanding the context of CRE effectiveness and skill acquisition for those intended to benefit.

Do high-risk couples profit more or less from couple relationship education programs than low-risk couples? Room for improvement and vulnerability effects.

In recent years it has been discussed whether high-risk couples benefit more from Couple Relationship Education programs (CREs) than low-risk couples due to larger room for improvement, or profit less due to greater vulnerability. Pertinent response prediction studies yielded inconclusive results. Careful review suggests this may be due to: statistical handling (not disentangling room for improvement and vulnerability effects), time frame analyzed (not disentangling opposing effects during intervention and follow-up), sampling, and selection of risk factors. We used an analytic strategy that maximized odds for replicability and tested two hypotheses: (1) room for improvement: pre-intervention relationship dissatisfaction predicts gain in satisfaction during intervention, and decline during follow up, and (2) vulnerability: when adjusted for room for improvement (pre-intervention relationship dissatisfaction), risk factors show negative or negligible, but no positive associations with gain in satisfaction. Actor-Partner Interdependence Modeling (APIM) was employed in 79 self-referred (SR) couples and 50 clinician-referred (CR) couples who had completed the 'Hold me Tight' program, a CRE based on Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy. Our findings supported both the room for improvement hypothesis, with pre-intervention dissatisfaction predicting more gain during intervention (both samples) and decline during follow-up (SR sample, for the CR sample the effect was negligible), and the vulnerability hypothesis, as several negative, but no positive effects of risk factors were observed during intervention and follow-up. Specific risk factors did not replicate between samples. To promote replicable results in future research, we advocate disentangling room for improvement and vulnerability effects, separately testing effects during intervention and follow-up, purposeful sampling, and studying a large set of risk factors including partner variables.

Concurrent randomized control trials of the 1-year efficacy of two couple relationship education programs: ELEVATE and Couples Connecting Mindfully.

A long-standing university-community partnership used a longitudinal randomized control trial to implement and evaluate two couple relationship education (CRE) curricula, ELEVATE and Couples Connecting Mindfully (CCM), among an economically and racially diverse population of adult couples. Married and non-married couples (n=929 couples) completed baseline surveys and were randomly assigned to either one of the two program groups or to the control group by implementation site. Follow-up surveys were collected at 2months, 6months, and 1year after baseline. Using an intent-to-treat approach, growth curve modeling comparisons of trajectories indicated program effects at 1year post-baseline in key outcome areas. Both the ELEVATE and the CCM group reported significant gains in couple relationship skills, couple quality, and family harmony over time compared to the control group that experienced either no change or declines. Further, the ELEVATE group also demonstrated positive program effects on measures of mental health and sleep quality. An assessment of the central premise of CRE indicated that the immediate post-program improvements in couple relationship skills predicted later couple quality for both program groups. This study indicates that both ELEVATE and CCM can be considered evidence-based CRE programs for use with a broad population of couples.

Do Couple Relationship Education Programs Affect Coparenting, Parenting, and Child Outcomes? A Meta-Analytic Study

Do Couple Relationship Education Programs Affect Coparenting, Parenting, and Child Outcomes? A Meta-Analytic Study

How effective are ACF-funded couple relationship education programs? A meta-analytic study.

Since 2006, the U.S. Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has allocated $1.2 billion to a Healthy Marriage and Relationship Education (HMRE) policy initiative that provides grants to community organizations to support relationship education (RE) services for lower income couples and individuals. The policy aim was to help disadvantaged couples and individuals form and sustain healthy, stable relationships and marriages. A significant body of research on the effectiveness of these programs has now accumulated. This meta-analytic study reviews all evaluation research reports of adult couple relationship education (CRE) programs supported by the ACF policy initiative to examine their impact on an array of couple, family, and individual well-being outcomes. Overall, our review of 32 control-group studies found a range of small but significant effects for couple relationship quality (d=.114), relationship skills (d=.132), mental health (d=.074), and coparenting (d=.033), but non-significant effects for relationship stability, parenting, and child well-being. Supplemental analyses with 19 1-group/pre-post studies showed larger effects. Planned moderator analyses explored significant heterogeneity in most effects, however, revealing interesting implications for practice and research going forward.

Predicting program retention in a flexibly-delivered relationship education program for low-income, unmarried parents

ABSTRACT Participation rates in couple relationship education (CRE) programs for low-income couples are typically low. We examined predictors of session attendance and early dropout (i.e., dropout after 1 session) among a sample of low-income, unmarried parents of a newborn (N = 467 couples) enrolled in an evidence-based CRE program. Predictors included demographics and socioeconomic status, as well as baseline indicators of relationship commitment, family and individual functioning, infant health, preventive health care utilization, and CRE coach perceptions of participant engagement and alliance in the first session of the program. Couples attended an average of 4.4 (SD = 2.5) of the 7 sessions, with nearly a quarter of couples dropping out after the first session. Attendance at fewer sessions was predicted by younger age. Early dropout was predicted by lower ratings of females’ engagement and both partners’ therapeutic alliance and, unexpectedly, by commitment. We discuss considerations for engaging low-income couples in CRE.

A systematic review of culturally relevant marriage and couple relationship education programs for African-American couples

ABSTRACTThis systematic review examined the extent to which marriage and couple relationship education programs targeting African-Americans utilize culturally relevant components and the efficacy of such components. Seven studies meeting the search criteria were included in the analysis. The types of culturally relevant components incorporated by the programs described in the studies included (a) the inclusion of spirituality and prayer, (b) racial/ethnic matching of facilitator and participants, (c) storytelling and oral tradition, (d) discussion of historical sociocultural factors, (e) integrated cultural values and racial identity, (f) strengths of African-American family and children, and (g) the use of Africentric principles and African-centered curriculum content. The findings suggest that African-American couples benefit from the incorporation of culturally relevant programs as a way to establish healthier relationships and couple satisfaction through improved relationship skills and communication. Overall support for cultural values essential in the African-American culture included connectedness, spirituality, strong African-American identity, and prayer.

Couple relationship education program \u201cLiving as Partners\u201d: evaluation of effects on marital quality and conflict

Relationship education programs are strategies that can favor better marital quality and conflict management between spouses. The relationship education program “Living as Partners: Turning Challenges into Opportunities” seeks to promote the couples’ learning of conflict resolution strategies and better quality levels in the relationship. This study evaluates the capacity of this program to produce results regarding marital quality and three dimensions of the couple’s conflict: frequency, intensity, and resolution strategies. Data from 41 couples were analyzed before and after the program, and a follow-up after 5 months (n = 33 couples) were conducted as well (single group, pre-test, post-test, and follow-up quasi-experimental design). Results show that the program produced immediate effects in all the outcome variables, which remained significant after 5 months, except for marital quality and for the strategy of compliance. These outcomes showed effect sizes ranging from low to high levels. The study presents evidence about the ability of the “Living as Partners” program to produce improvements in couple’s conflict indicators, addressing an unexplored field of research and intervention focused on Brazilian cultural specificities.

Changes in Couple Relationship Dynamics among Low-Income Parents in a Relationship Education Program Are Associated with Decreases in Their Children's Mental Health Symptoms.

Witnessing intimate partner violence (IPV) among parents negatively impacts millions of children in the United States each year. Low-income families are disproportionately affected by IPV compared to middle- and high-income individuals, and are beginning to be the focus of IPV secondary prevention interventions, including relationship education programs. Despite these developments, few studies have examined changes in psychosocial functioning among children of parents participating in relationship education programs. The current study examined the extent to which changes in specific couple dynamics among individuals from low-income backgrounds participating in a couple relationship education program, Within My Reach, were associated with changes in child mental health symptoms. A second purpose of this paper is to examine whether changes in parent–child relationship quality mediates the association between changes in couple dynamics and changes in child mental health difficulties. Participants (n = 347) were parents who participated in Within My Reach as part of programming offered at a large community agency. Decreases in negative couple conflict behaviors, including conflict engagement, withdrawal and compliance, over the course of the program were linked to decreases in child mental health difficulties. In addition, increases in parent–child relationship quality partially mediated the associations between decreases in compliance, as well as increase in overall couple relationship quality, and decreases in child symptoms. Community-based couple relationship education programs for low-income families can potentially have multiple positive impacts throughout the family system, including for children.

The Associations of Dyadic Coping and Relationship Satisfaction Vary between and within Nations: A 35-Nation Study.

Objective: Theories about how couples help each other to cope with stress, such as the systemic transactional model of dyadic coping, suggest that the cultural context in which couples live influences how their coping behavior affects their relationship satisfaction. In contrast to the theoretical assumptions, a recent meta-analysis provides evidence that neither culture, nor gender, influences the association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction, at least based on their samples of couples living in North America and West Europe. Thus, it is an open questions whether the theoretical assumptions of cultural influences are false or whether cultural influences on couple behavior just occur in cultures outside of the Western world.Method: In order to examine the cultural influence, using a sample of married individuals (N = 7973) from 35 nations, we used multilevel modeling to test whether the positive association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction varies across nations and whether gender might moderate the association.Results: Results reveal that the association between dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction varies between nations. In addition, results show that in some nations the association is higher for men and in other nations it is higher for women.Conclusions: Cultural and gender differences across the globe influence how couples' coping behavior affects relationship outcomes. This crucial finding indicates that couple relationship education programs and interventions need to be culturally adapted, as skill trainings such as dyadic coping lead to differential effects on relationship satisfaction based on the culture in which couples live.

Controversies in couple relationship education (CRE): Overlooked evidence and implications for research and policy.

Government interest in strengthening families in the United States and Great Britain has contributed to a rapid growth in couple relationship education (CRE) interventions, with a recent increase in programs for low-income families. We describe the policy contexts that initially led to increased support for CRE in both countries but now threaten its continuation. We summarize meta-analytic research and discussions of single studies by authors who draw opposing inferences about CRE effectiveness, often from the same studies. We discuss three sets of findings not featured in previous reviews, all of which focus on the potential benefits of CRE for the well-being of children. First, without intervention, average couple relationship satisfaction declines, with negative consequences for children. Second, including both parents in father involvement and parenting interventions results in value-added contributions to family functioning. Third, we describe 9 CRE intervention trials that include child outcomes, 8 of which support the assumption that CRE benefits children. These studies represent only a first step in determining what happens to children when their parents experience CRE. From both research and policy perspectives, there are too many positive findings to give credence to the claim that CRE programs should be discontinued and funding directed elsewhere. But there are too many negative findings to support the conclusion that CRE has been an unqualified success and that existing programs should be offered more widely. The negative findings and criticisms have much to teach us about potential modifications to CRE programs that will lead to more effective CRE approaches.

Relationship education in community settings: effectiveness with distressed and non-distressed low-income racial minority couples.

Couple relationship education (CRE) programs are intended to prevent negative couple outcomes, however, some evidence suggests couples in greater distress may still benefit. The current study examined pre- and postchanges in relationship functioning of 362 low-income African American and Hispanic couples. Outcomes (dedication and communication) were assessed by examining differences between two distinct groupings of couples; distressed (both partners reporting clinically significant distress) and nondistressed (neither partner reporting clinically significant distress) couples. Distressed couples at predemonstrated large-sized gains in all outcome variables, as compared to nondistressed couples. Those who participated in the single-couple format demonstrated lower gains in positive communication as compared to those in the group format. Implications for distressed couples in CRE programs are offered.

Exploring processes of change in couple relationship education: Predictors of change in relationship quality.

In the past several decades, a number of largely atheoretical individual and meta-analytic studies of couple relationship education (CRE) programs have focused on program effectiveness without considerations of how these programs work and for whom. To address this gap in the literature, the current study drew upon assumptions from social-cognitive and behavioral theories that are implicit in CRE design to assess the influence of short-term changes from pre- to posttreatment in behaviors and commitment on changes in relationship quality among a racially and economically diverse group of 2,824 individuals who participated in a CRE program. Findings from structural equation modeling indicated that the best-fitting model for both men and women was one in which changes in behaviors predicted changes in relationship quality via their influence on changes in commitment. Further, a series of moderational analyses provided some evidence to suggest that the strength of the relationships between these variables may depend to a small extent on the social address of the participants (race, income) and to a greater extent on characteristics of the CRE experience (i.e., beginning the class at lower levels of functioning, attending with a partner). Findings help us begin to understand the influences among domains of change that occur as a result of participating in a CRE program, as well as offering some useful information to practitioners on demographic and contextual moderators of program outcomes. Implications for future research on the mechanisms of change for CRE are presented.

The alliance in relationship education programs.

Couple relationship education (CRE) programs are associated with positive romantic relationship outcomes; however, the mechanisms by which these gains occur are less understood. The current study (122 couples) utilized actor-partner modeling to examine the association between the therapeutic alliance and dedication and negative and positive communication for racial/ethnic minority couples. Additionally, we examined whether gender and delivery format moderated these relationships. Results demonstrated that both men's and women's alliance scores were significantly related to their own outcomes. Higher ratings of alliance were related to partner outcomes for men only. The association between partners' alliance and dedication outcomes was stronger within the group format as compared to the couple format. Implications for leaders of CRE programs are offered.