Marriages of respondents that ended in divorce were not as good as marriages of other couples they had known nor did the marriage meet expectations held prior to entering into the relationship. The most frequent problem was unfaithfulness. (Author)

All of the measures require greater reading capability than tests like the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory that are designed for use with diverse clinical populations. Unfortunately, some important measures based on promising social-learning conceptualizations of marital conflict were among the more difficult. (Author)

The use of poetry in couples' groups is suggested to facilitate group process and break down resistance. Techniques include the use of reactions to a poem or song, the construction of poems, and the development of images. Poetry can help clients express feelings and examine communication patterns. (Author)

Describes series of successful marital workshops conducted at Kansas State Penitentiary, involving problems of inmates, their wives and children. Marital and family counseling seen as effective in implementing changes in inmates' attitudes and behaviors. Recommends marital counseling in all penitentiaries; suggests social workers work to make…

Couples completed questionnaires designed to test assumptions of the Spouse Observation Checklist. The assumption that the checklist represents the universe of marital pleasing and displeasing events received some support. Data did not support the assumption that couples can reliably observe their own behavior. (Author)

Suggests that, for some research, interviewing spouses together leads to data being generated that could not be obtained from individual interviews. Interaction of the spouses promotes a fuller presentation of the matter under discussion. This interaction is observed directly and thus can be used as data. (Author/BEF)

Two marriage counseling approaches were explored: (1) couples received counseling one hour per week for an indefinite time period; (2) couples were seen two hours biweekly for five visits. Couples receiving biweekly counseling reported more satisfaction and optimism and tended to be more committed to the counseling relationship. (DS)

Studies involving couples focused on the development of a Marital Satisfaction Inventory (MSI). Correlational analyses confirm that measures of communication are the best single predictors of global marital satisfaction. Profile analyses demonstrate the ability of the MSI to discriminate between couples in therapy and a matched control group.…

If counselors can stretch themselves further to reach into the community to share knowledge with other institutions and can together set up programs to inspire greater self-esteem and self-respect, they might be able to significantly reduce the divorce rate by raising the status of singlehood. (Author)

Emotion-focused therapy (EFT) for couples was compared to pharmacotherapy in the treatment of major depressive disorder. Both interventions were equally effective in symptom reduction. Results suggest EFT might be useful in the treatment of comorbid major depressive disorder and relational distress. (Contains 34 references and 1 figure.) (GCP)

Describes the spiritual genogram, a blueprint of family members' multigenerational religious and spiritual affiliations, events, and conflicts. Used as a tool in both training and supervision, the spiritual genogram enables students and supervisees to make sense of their own religious and spiritual heritage and to explore the ways in which their…

Explores the marital happiness, state/trait anxiety, coping techniques, and types of support received for a national sample of men and women experiencing the infertility medical process. Suggests that counselors should be aware that medical treatment affects the distress level of the individual and couple and the types of coping used. Further…

This article discusses the curriculum of an ethics course for marriage and family counseling students, focusing on (a) course objectives and course schedule, (b) active learning techniques in the classroom, (c) homework assignments (including the use of technology), and (d) midterm and final exams. The use of active teaching techniques is…

Examines developments in empirical research in family therapy training since Kniskern and Gurman's (1979) review. Assesses present knowledge concerning training outcomes in marital and family therapy from six studies of the development of instruments for measuring the outcome of training and nine studies which actually evaluate training outcome.…

Randomly assigned 79 couples seeking treatment for relationship distress to behavioral marital therapy, insight-oriented marital therapy or waiting list. Both therapies resulted in significant improvements in self-reports of global marital accord and, to lesser extent, in reduction of overall psychological distress and in enhancement of…