Despite the large literature on the long-term effects of parental divorce, few studies have analyzed the effects of parental divorce on spouse selection behavior. However, the characteristics of one's spouse can have important effects on economic well-being and on marital success. We use discrete-time, event-history data from Finnish population…

This study examined self-reported marital conflict behaviors and their implications for divorce. Husbands and wives (N = 373 couples; 47% White American, 53% Black American) reported conflict behaviors in Years 1, 3, 7, and 16 of their marriages. Individual behaviors (e.g., destructive behaviors) and patterns of behaviors between partners (e.g.,…

Integrative Behavioral Couple Therapy (IBCT) posits that emotional reactions to a partner's behavior can be as important to the relationship as the behavior itself. This study examined whether acceptance (a) is distinct from relationship sentiment, (b) mediates the link between a partner's behavioral frequency and own relationship satisfaction,…

Explored the effects of spouses' wake and sleep patterns on marital adjustment in couples (n=150). Couples whose wake and sleep patterns were mismatched reported significantly less marital adjustment, more marital conflict, less time spent in serious conversation, less time spent in shared activities and less frequent sexual intercourse.…

Analyzed relational control behaviors and interaction patterns of 51 couples representing marital life span. Identified three distinct phases of development: short-term couples relied heavily on "equivalence" acts; intermediate couples were more likely to "structure the conversation" but avoided competing for control; and long-term couples relied…

Compared conflictual marital interactions of 17 physically aggressive, 15 verbally aggressive, 18 withdrawing, and 15 low-conflict couples to describe behavior patterns characteristic of couples who report different marital conflict styles. Physically aggressive couples were characterized by reciprocity of hostile affect and by rigid, contingent…

Tested the hypothesis that distressed spouses are more reactive to immediate events than nondistressed couples. Couples recorded positive, negative and neutral events and satisfaction levels. Distressed couples reported lower rates of positive behavior and that marital satisfaction depended more on frequency of recent positive or negative events.…

Explores the relationship between divorce and suicide through a multiple regression analysis. Results indicate that the incidence of divorce is closely associated with the rate of suicide even after controls for the influence of the effects of age composition, race, the rate of interstate migration, and income. (Author/BEF)

Determined whether spouses in nondistressed marriages show greater equity and reciprocity of exchange and a greater degree of congruence than spouses experiencing marital distress by examining interactive patterns of self-disclosing behavior using the Self-Disclosure Coding System. Within-couple reciprocity patterns revealed highly similar…

In this study husbands were perceived as more psychologically healthy when they had children than when they had no children. Wives were liked less and viewed more negatively on general personality descriptors when they were described as voluntarily childless than when they were involuntarily childless. (Author)

The role of formal assessment in the practice of sex therapy with couples is discussed. A case is made for the use of behaviorally oriented paper-and-pencil tests of the self-report variety in clinical settings. Such procedures yield information relevant to diagnosis. (Author)

Examines two factors of dyadic relationships on the basis of communicative behaviors: domineeringness, an individual measure based on one-up messages, and dominance, a joint measure based on the dyad's transactional patterns. These variables are associated with differential levels of dyadic satisfaction, degree of interspousal understanding, and…

Notes that interpersonal conflict among family members and between spouses can cause dissatisfaction and threaten feasibility of marriage. Defines Family Defense Mechanisms (FDMs) as fixed patterns of behaviors that, when followed by spouses and other family members, enable them to better manage their interpersonal differences and conflict.…

In this study, the model of two independent dimensions of family connectedness, closeness-caregiving, and intrusiveness, was tested by assessing spouses from 264 couples, using the California Inventory for Family Assessment (CIFA). As predicted, factor analyses distinguished dimensions of intrusiveness (blurring of boundaries) from…

This study was conducted to examine the moderating effects of attributions on the relationship between marital satisfaction and marital violence. It was predicted that distressed spouses who made more maladaptive attributions for partner behavior would be more likely to engage in marital violence than would distressed spouses who offered fewer…