Analyzes census data to examine the extent and causes of the continuing high rates of poverty among black Americans over the last two decades. Discusses the increase in black female-household heads and findings of a correlation between marital breakup and the income and employment history of husbands. (KH)

Investigates and analyzes the connections between couples' complaint behavior and their feelings about their relationships. Indicates that adjusted (as opposed to maladjusted) couples are significantly more likely to manifest behavioral (instead of personal characteristic) complaints, positive (as opposed to negative) affect, and agreement (rather…

Examined 112 distressed and nondistressed Israeli couples' presenting complaints about their relationship, their perceptions of each other's complaints, and perceptual accuracy between actual and perceived complaints, using the Areas of Change Questionnaire. Compared results with a previous study of American distressed and nondistressed couples.…

A study of dissatisfied married couples found that those who received individual counseling and consultation benefited more than did persons receiving one kind of traditional counseling for couples. (Author)

Fifty couples who had the most positive or negative reactions in a group of Marriage Encounter couples were interviewed. Results indicated nine couples experienced significant negative changes related to Marriage Encounter, suggesting that distressed couples who attend Marriage Encounters are susceptible to further marital deterioration.…

Studied predictor variables related to the outcome of spouse-aided therapy in 28 married patients with persisting psychiatric disorders. Results showed significant, sustained improvement in couples' ratings of personal and target problems after therapy. Poor response was linked to extrapunitiveness, denial, and adherence to an illness model of…

Examined couples' and observers' perspectives of marital interaction. Nondistressed (N=10) and distressed (N=6) couples and objective observers (N=10) evaluated couples' interactional behaviors. Spouses' ratings of their partners' behavior were not consistent with observers' ratings of partners' behaviors but were consistent with observers'…

Investigated the impact of age and premarital fertility status on subsequent marital dissolution for Black and White women (N=6,374). Results using multivariate proportional hazards models indicate that premarital births, but not premarital pregnancies, increase risk of marital dissolution, and an increasing age reduces the risk of divorce.…

Analyzed whether the relative attainments of spouses at one point in time are associated with divorce, leaving the labor force, moving to a lower status job, and/or moving to a traditional job. Findings emphasized the importance of wife's employment in a nontraditional job as a predictor of change. (Author/RC)

Marital discord accounted for much of the association between having a parent with bipolar disorder or unipolar depression and school problem behavior, but the same variable did not explain the relationship between having a schizophrenic parent and problems in school. (Author/CL)

Describes development and validation of an inventory measuring five dysfunctional relationship beliefs. This Relationship Belief Inventory (RBI) was administered to couples along with measures of marital functioning and a questionnaire assessing irrational beliefs about self. Results demonstrated internal consistency, convergent validity, and…

Identifies different patterns of wife abuse, using a multivariate quantitative taxonomic procedure to delineate five homogeneous subgroups of abused women. Found that abuse occurs differentially in stable and unstable relationships, with differences in individual histories and responses of the victim to her assailant. (Author/JAC)

Therapists (N=250) completed questionnaires rating the frequency, severity, and treatment difficulty for 29 problems commonly experienced by distressed couples. Responses indicated a number of potential directions for research in marital therapy. Communication and alcoholism were rated as the most damaging and difficult problems to treat.…

Examines the use of the often quoted remarriage studies done in the 1950s and found that extreme caution should be used in presentations where redivorce is discussed. The traditional family form may not be in as much of a decline as some report. (Author)

A nonrandom sample of 86 cases of Israeli separation and divorce cases was compared with a Canadian sample (N=369). Sex-role conflicts were more frequent in Israel, as were violence in separation and divorce. (Author)