This investigation was the second in a series of empirical studies on marital enrichment training using the Training in Marital Enrichment (TIME) model. In addition to further study of the TIME model, interest was also directed in the current study to more fully clarifying the nature of change in the model by including a measure of the construct…

Contrasted marriage and family therapy dropouts and completers on interventions they were exposed to over the course of therapy and during the initial session. Results showed families completing therapy were exposed to such interventions as firming up appropriate boundaries, escalating conflict, establishing individual boundaries, and advice…

Outlines a strategic approach to depression and gives reasons for initially working with each spouse separately. Three interrelated aspects of depressive marital situations are distinguished: (1) the unsatisfying marriage; (2) the distress of the depressed person; and (3) the spouse's response. A case example is provided. (JAC)

Examines reports of marital problems from couples at different stages of the life course. Results indicated that presenting problems were generally the same, regardless of whether the couple was newly married, in the childbearing years, or married over a decade. Moreover, wives reported more problems in the their relationships than did husbands,…

Examined marital therapy strategies of reflection and reframing on spouses' immediate patterns of relating, and investigated therapists' choice of technique immediately following different spousal interactions. Coded 628 pre- and post-intervention sequences from 13 therapy cases. Therapists chose reflection following defensive behaviors; reframing…

Reviewed cases of 103 couples seen in systems-oriented marital therapy to identify outcome and treatment issues as a function of marital paradigm. Found 92 percent of the 38 cases where both partners identified with the same basic paradigm were judged to be treatment successes, while only 60 percent of the cases with different paradigms were…

Compared cognitive-behavioral therapy (CT), behavioral marital therapy (BMT), and combination of two therapies in alleviation of wives' depression and enhancement of marital satisfaction. Found BMT less effective than CT for depression in maritally nondistressed couples. For maritally distressed couples, two treatments were equally effective.…

Disputes Jacobson's characterizations (1991) of behavioral marital therapy (BMT) and insight-oriented marital therapy (IOMT) delivered in Snyder, Wills, and Grady-Fletcher's (1991) comparative treatment study. Presents data showing that treatments were as effective or more so than previously published marital therapy outcome studies. Suggests that…

An attempt was made to determine the challenges that may be encountered by intermarried couples who worship in a Greek Orthodox Church. Some couples described unresolved disagreements linked to their religious and cultural differences. Clinical implications suggest that intermarried couples' different religious and cultural backgrounds may be…

Thirty-one couples participated in the Marriage Checkup (MC), a pilot, motivational interviewing intervention for at-risk couples. Marital satisfaction improved significantly from pre- to post-checkup and remained improved at one month follow up. Although not addressing the efficacy of MC, this study supports its validity as an indicative…

The role of cognitions in marital relationships has received increasing attention. Specific beliefs about marital relationships have shown consistent correlations with overall marital satisfaction. As a measure of dysfunctional beliefs about intimate relationships, the Relationship Belief Inventory provides five dysfunctional beliefs scores. This…

Reports on a clinical trial (N = 43 couples) that compares a hope-focused marital enrichment with empathy-centered forgiveness-based marital enrichment Hope-focused marital enrichment produced clinically relevant changes in marital communication. The forgiveness-based marital enrichment psychoeducational group is one of the first studies of…

Examined the process of marital disaffection to determine whether there is a pattern of sequential stages. Developed three-phase model of disaffection from the results of in-depth interviews with 49 highly disaffected spouses. Results suggest that marital therapy must involve different goals and interventions during each phase of disaffection to…

Explores whether marital relationships of doctoral students are affected while they are in graduate school. Results show no significant differences among the marital satisfaction of graduate students at different stages in their program. Differences were found with couples involved in marital therapy. Spouses of graduate students reported less…

Proposes that premarital education efforts can reduce marital distress and divorce. Using a combination of rational argument and empirical findings, four key benefits of premarital education are discussed: (a) it fosters deliberation; (b) it sends the message that marriage matters; (c) it make seeking help an option; and (d) it may lower risk for…