Marital Well-being Research Articles

For Better or for Worse: Real-Ideal Discrepancies and the Marital Well-Being of Newlyweds

This study examined the relationship between an individual's real-ideal discrepancy about the spouse and the marital well-being of both spouses. In the first year of the study, individuals from 153 African-American couples and 160 White couples rated their partners and their ideals for their partners on 12 characteristics. Discrepancies between ratings of the partner and ideals for the partner were negatively correlated with the Year 1 marital well-being of each spouse. Also, while controlling for the Year 1 marital well-being of both partners, wives' real-ideal discrepancies about their husbands were negatively related to the Year 2 marital well-being of both partners, but husbands' discrepancies did not predict the Year 2 marital well-being of either partner. When the separate effects of discrepancies, ratings of the partner, and ideals were examined, women's discrepancies predicted the Year 2 marital well-being of both partners, and men's ratings of their wives predicted their own Year 2 marital well-being.

Traumatic Events and Marital Well-Being

Using a national probability sample, we investigate the impact of traumatic events on marital well-being. We argue that traumatic life events such as the death of a child, a life-threatening illness, and physical attack have a negative impact on marital well-being and that this impact is moderated by spousal support. Partially confirming our first hypothesis, we found that physical attack is a significant predictor of marital wellbeing. Respondents who had been physically attacked in the past reported lower levels of marital satisfaction. As predicted, spousal support critically affected the relationship between traumatic events and marital well-being. Key Words: marital quality, marital satisfaction, spousal support, traumatic events. Although several researchers have explored the correlates of marital satisfaction (Broman, 1991; 1993; Crohan & Veroff, 1989; Glenn, 1989; Glenn & McLanahan, 1982; Glenn & Weaver, 1978; 1988; McLanahan & Adams, 1987; Miller, 1976; White, 1983; White, Booth, & Edwards, 1986), much of the research does not address the role of life stress. In this research, we focus on how the role of traumatic life events affects marital satisfaction and happiness. Consistent with the literature on stress, we advance and test two predictions: that traumatic life events have a negative impact on the sense of satisfaction in marriage and that this effect is moderated by spousal support. THE LIFE COURSE PERSPECTIVE We use a life course perspective as an overarching framework for our discussion of traumatic life events. We argue for the merging of a life course perspective with life stress research as a means to understand the complexity of the impact of traumatic events on the marital relationship. Although the life course perspective and stress research are represented by vast bodies of literature, we have identified themes from the literature that are relevant to our present study. We begin by arguing for a broader conception of as it relates to the life course. Most studies that utilize a life course perspective focus on normative events and transitions such as role occupation (Moen, Dempster-McClain, & Williams, 1989; 1992), employment patterns (McLanahan & Sorenson, 1985), parenthood (Umberson & Gove, 1989), and changes in household composition (McLanahan & Sorenson 1985). By normative, we mean that certain events in a family's life course can be anticipated to one degree or another. For example, we expect to see fluctuations in financial security within a family as it goes through various stages in the life course. Therefore, families save money in times of relative prosperity in anticipation for a rainy day. This idea of normativeness is in contrast to our use of traumatic events, which are uncontrollable and extremely negative. In doing this, we expand the operationalized domain of the life course perspective by focusing on the kinds of life events-like death of a child, criminal victimization, or suffering from a life-threatening illness-that are conventionally investigated in stress research. Even when the focus of life course research is on undesirable events (Conger, Lorenz, Elder, Simons & Ge, 1993), there is still the sense that these events are part of an expected norm of family life course trajectories (such as parent and child conflict, divorce or separation). Traumatic events, which cannot be anticipated, are generally beyond the control of individual family members, and, therefore, are not normative. The second theme we build on is that the past can have very real consequences in the present. We look at the relationship between suffering a traumatic event and its impact on the present marital relationship. Again, this extends the notion of life event because we are dealing with uncontrollable, extremely negative life events that generally are not considered normative. Much of the research that examines the present impact of past events retains a normative definition of events and focuses on issues such as role overload and family conflict (for example, Moen et al. …

Relationships among Belief in a Just World, Willingness to Accommodate, and Marital Well-Being

The relationship between willingness to accommodate and belief in a just world (JW), possible mediators of this relationship, and their impact on marital satisfaction and perceived conflict were examined among older and younger married couples. In both samples, JW predicted greater willingness to accommodate. Among older couples, the relationship of JW to own accommodation was mediated by perceptions of spousal accommodation. Among younger couples, the relationship of JW to own accommodation was not explained by perceived spousal accommodation, trust, or partner perspective taking. Further, only among older couples did JW predict greater marital satisfaction and lower frequency of conflict. For older couples, the relationship of JW to satisfaction was not explained by own or perceived spousal accommodation; however; own and perceived spousal accommodation accounted for the relationship of JW to frequency of conflict. These studies suggest that belief in a just world contributes positively to interpersonal processes and marital well-being.

Marital Quality Over the Life Course

Much prior research in social psychology indicates that in many domains of social life, individuals' well-being improves in the latter half of the life course. The reason for this pattern is not well understood, however. We argue that objective changes in family composition and in social and economic conditions in middle and later life may explain the later-life increase in well-being. To test this argument we focus on one domain, marital well-being, and examine the curvilinear relationship between marital duration and marital quality, with emphasis on the latter half of the marital life course. Our results show that reduced work and parental responsibilities in later life explain much of the later-life increase in marital satisfaction but do not account for the decrease in thoughts of divorce. Longitudinal research is needed to confirm our results, which are necessarily confined to cross-sectional data.

Couples' Co-Construction of the Story of Their Child's Birth: Associations With Marital Adaptation

Abstract Recent research showing links between family narratives and emotional adaptation has raised questions regarding the significance of the coherence of marital narratives for couple adaptation, the important distinction between the narratives couples co-construct and the dyadic process during the co-construction, and the roles of individual psychological functioning and marital functioning in co-constructed narratives. In order to address these questions, we investigated the associations between couples' narratives about the birth of their child and their marital satisfaction and individual psychological wellbeing at the time the narrative was constructed as well as 1 and 2 years later. Results show that the emotional coherence of couples' narratives was associated with their marital satisfaction at the time the narrative was constructed as well as 1 and 2 years later, and similar results were found regarding the emotional expressiveness of the narratives. These associations remained significant when the individual psychological distress of marital partners was held constant and suggest that co-constructed marital narratives are important windows into marital relationships.(Psychology)

Belief and Behavior: Does Religion Matter in Today's Marriage?

In this study the impact of changes in religiosity on marital quality and vice versa is examined. Using longitudinal data from a national sample of married persons, we assess the extent to which changes in religious involvement influence marital quality and the extent to which changes in marital quality affect religiosity. Because most prior studies of this topic have been cross-sectional, our work fills a major research gap. We address two questions: (a) Do changes in religiosity alter marital quality or vice versa, and (b) if either change occurs, what aspects of marital quality and religiosity are involved? Social scientists have a long history of research attempting to explain how religious sentiments direct social action (e.g., Davidson, 1972; Moberg, 1982; see Warner, 1993 for a careful review of early work on the topic). Ever since the 19th century, theorists--most notably Durkheim --have examined the way in which beliefs about the supernatural direct, legitimate, and support social activity (Turner, 1991; Wilson, 1982). More recently, however, scholars have questioned religion's capacity to serve as a socially integrative force in contemporary society, emphasizing that modernization has diminished the power of religious institutions to exercise social control (D'Antonio, 1983; Hargrove, 1983, p. 44). The relation between religion and families is one key area in which the question of religion's social integrative function is at issue. Noting that traditional conceptions of marital obligations based on external controls have been eroded by modernization, scholars have suggested that religious institutions might come to play a different role than that of negative social control. Rather than attempting to reinforce traditional conceptions of marital obligations, some theorists have argued that religious institutions need to provide support and nurturance for the patterns of family life as they currently exist (Aldous, 1983; D'Antonio, 1983; Hargrove, 1983). Although Aldous, D'Antonio, and Hargrove prescribed this development and did not observe it happening in any substantial way, cross-sectional studies show contemporary religion to be modestly related to marital well-being (e.g., Albrecht, 1979; Bahr & Chadwick, 1985; Ellison, 1991; Glenn & Supancic, 1984; Greeley, 1991; Pollner, 1989; Wilson & Filsinger, 1986). One of the most intriguing studies on this topic is reported in Judith Stacey's book, Brave New Families (1990), an in-depth study of two working-class women's families residing in the Silicon Valley. Both women have strong feminist views, which are reflected in their approach to finding and keeping their jobs. At the same time, both are converts to a paternalistic fundamentalist religion in which they are actively involved. While the juxtaposition of the two behaviors challenges our predilection to see consistency in attitudes and social processes, the benefits of the two streams of behavior are clear for the women studied. According to Stacey, the feminist views and the support to and from other women that they entail helped the two women get and keep jobs and deal with unemployment. The fundamentalist religion improved their marriage and family life. The rise in religious participation appeared to increase the male's (and to some extent the female's) ability to hold a steady job, drink less, and be less abusive in relations with family and spouse. Though the study has limited generalizability, it reveals religion as a source of support and strength in nontraditional family life. One of the study's further strengths is its longitudinal design. Stacey was able to track the women in her study during the course of their conversion to a fundamentalist religion. Unlike the cross-sectional researchers, however, Stacey is the first to associate a change in religiosity with improved marital quality. Parallel changes increase the probability that the observed relationship between changes in religiosity and marital quality are causal in nature. …

Sexual Satisfaction and Marital Well-Being in the First Years of Marriage

We consider the importance of sexual satisfaction in the first years of marriage. First, we examine how husbands' and wives' feelings of affirmation and tension in their marriage relate to levels of sexual satisfaction. Further, we explore the relationship between sexual satisfaction and four dimensions of marital well-being: competence, control, equity and happiness. Data from a longitudinal study of black and white couples were analysed separately by race and gender. In both the first and third years of marriage, feelings of affirmation and tension were associated with sexual satisfaction for all race and gender groups. Sexual satisfaction was related to several dimensions of marital well-being, though not always in the expected direction, and the patterns differed across race and gender groups. Sexual satisfaction is at least as important to wives as to husbands, but it is important to conduct separate analyses for race and gender groups.

Gender differences in the link between marital support and satisfaction in older couples.

Recent work on social support in marriage indicates that the link between marital satisfaction and social support is stronger for wives than husbands (D. Julien & H. J. Markman, 1991). Hypotheses based on these findings and on studies of interpersonal perception were tested on a sample of 69 older married couples (mean age = 74 years). The separate effects of giving, receiving, and reciprocity on spouses' marital satisfaction and well-being were examined. Analyzing the data separately for husbands and wives reveals that perceptions of social support in marriage are more strongly related to the marital satisfaction and general well-being of wives than husbands. Methodological and theoretical interpretations are offered that shed light on the differences between men and women in the meaning of social support in marriage.

Infertility and parenthood: does becoming a parent increase well-being?

There is a large literature that demonstrates that infertility has a variety of negative effects on women's and men's well-being, but little is known about the impact of becoming a parent. The effects of parenthood were examined in a longitudinal study with both wives and husbands from 174 infertile couples and a comparison group of 74 presumed fertile couples. Infertile women who became parents experienced greater global well-being but diminished marital well-being, compared with infertile women who had not become parents. Infertile men who became parents experienced the same negative effects that their wives reported, but they did not experience positive effects to the same extent. Parental status had fewer positive and negative effects on members of presumed-fertile couples. These results are discussed in terms of gender differences in the meaning of parenthood, and their implications for research and clinical services are considered.

Race Differences in Marital Well-Being

Analyse du role joue par l'appartenance raciale dans le bien-etre marital. Hypothese que les Noirs americains considerent que leur union est moins harmonieuse que celle des Blancs americains ; de meme les Noires americaines seraient moins satisfaites de leur mariage que les Blanches. La communaute noire americaine se caracterise semble-t-il par un moindre soutien emotionnel et financier entre epoux comparativement a la population blanche

The impact of young children with externalizing behaviors on their families.

Compared the impact on families of young children with externalizing behaviors (e.g., hyperactive, aggressive; n = 22), autism (n = 20), or no significant problem behaviors (n = 22) on several measures of family functioning. Previous studies have found heightened stress and parental maladjustment in families with externalizing children. The present study expanded upon that literature by (1) including a clinical control group to determine the specific impact of externalizing problems, (2) focusing on preschool aged children, and (3) using a new measure to directly ascertain parents' perception of impact. Compared to parents with normally developing children, parents with externalizing children reported more negative impact on social life, more negative and less positive feelings about parenting, and higher child-related stress. Moreover, parents of externalizing children reported levels of impact and stress as high as those reported by parents of children with autism. On broader measures of parental and marital well-being, however, the three groups of families of preschoolers did not differ. The implications of these findings for intervention are discussed.

Perceptions of Conflict in the First Year of Marriage: How Important are Similarity and Understanding?

Perceptions of self and spouse play a central role in marital relationships. Using data from 219 newlywed couples, we examined the relative importance (to marital well-being) of partners' similarity and understanding of conflict styles. These data include reports of behaviors of the self and spouse during their most recent disagreement. Behaviors were categorized as either constructive or destructive to resolving the conflict, and data from each category were analyzed separately. Measures of perceptions of similarity based on one spouse's report, actual similarity between spouses' separate reports and spouses' accuracy in reporting (or `understanding' of) each other's behaviors were derived from these reports. Consistent with earlier studies, perceived similarity was shown to be higher than actual similarity and was a stronger positive predictor of marital well-being. This finding highlights the importance of partners believing that they are similar. The strongest predictor of marital well-being for wives was wives' understanding of their husbands. For husbands, both spouses' self-reports of their own behaviors were the strongest predictors. These gender differences are discussed with regard to differences in orientation toward and power in relationships.

Gender Differences in Relationship Awareness and Marital Satisfaction among Young Married Couples

Relationship awareness is defined here as thinking about interaction patterns, comparisons, or contrasts between oneself and one's partner in a relationship. This concept provides a frame-work for examining the effects of spouses' thinking and talking about their own relationships on marital satisfaction and contentment with life. During interviews conducted with 42 married couples, wives talked more about their relationships than their husbands did. Wives' marital satisfaction was positively associated with the husbands' degree of relationship talk during the interview. The association between husbands' relationship talk and wives' marital well-being was strongest for wives who talked very little about their relationship. Husbands' marital satisfaction was not related to either spouse's relationship talk. A similar pattern of results was found for contentment with life. Findings are discussed in light of previous research that focuses on gender differences in relationships, in the sense of self and interpersonal communication.

Consequences of Participating in a Longitudinal Study of Marriage

Consequences of Participating in a Longitudinal Study of Marriage

Consequences of Parental Divorce and Marital Unhappiness for Adult Well-Being

Based on a national sample of adults, individuals who experienced parental divorce as children were compared with those who did not experience marital dissolution. Respondents from disrupted families of origin scored lower than those from happily intact families of origin on measures of psychological, social, and marital well-being but not on measures of socioeconomic adequacy. These differences, however, were generally weak in magnitude. Individualsfrom intactfamily backgrounds who described their parents as unhappily married exhibited lower levels of well-being than did individuals who described their parents as happily married. Divorces that entailed a decline in parent child-relations, and multiple divorces on the part of parents, appeared to be particularly problematic. Individuals experiencing low-stress parental divorces did not differ appreciably from those who grew up in happily intact homes. The topic of children and divorce has generated a substantial body of research. Most of this work is concerned with the short- and medium-term effects of family disruption on young children. In contrast, relatively few studies have searched for long-term consequences of divorce that may persist into adulthood. Of those studies that do, most focus on a few outcomes and do not consider the ways in which post-divorce factors may influence later well-being. The present study extends prior research in three ways. First, we use national survey data to estimate the consequences of parental divorce across a wide range of measures of adult well-being. Second, we take into account the potentially mediating effects of a variety of post-divorce family arrangements, such as parental remarriage and closeness to parents. And third, we include in the analysis adults whose parents were unhappily married but did not divorce.

Gender Differences in Environmental Influences on Marital Satisfaction: A Path Analysis

AbstractA path analysis of a random sample of 86 couples consisting of male pastoral counselors and their wives demonstrated that husbands and wives do not necessarily have the same perceptions of their environments. Environmental factors were found to have both direct and indirect effects on marital satisfaction for both spouses; however, the effects for wives were not the same as those for husbands. These suggest that meeting the housing needs and values of both spouses may be a factor in marital well-being.

Dimensions of Marital Well-Being among White and Black Newlyweds

Dimensions of Marital Well-Being among White and Black Newlyweds

Unemployment induced adaptations: Relationships among economic responses and individual and marital well-being

This study explores the impact of consumption changes, implemented during unemployment, on perceived economic, marital, and emotional functioning of 34 husbands and 34 wives. Questionnaires completed at the onset of unemployment assessed initial level of perceived functioning. Questionnaires completed one year later assessed the level of functioning in three areas and the extent to which seven categories of consumption changes were implemented. Multivariate analyses determined that credit use and income raising are significant predictors of economic satisfaction. Changes in income raising, credit use, planning, and store choice are significant predictors of marital adjustment. None of the changes predict depression.

Type A behavior of administrators and wives' reports of marital satisfaction and well-being.

Type A behavior of administrators and wives' reports of marital satisfaction and well-being.