Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Anthony Jurich / This study used a qualitative approach as a means of exploring the decision-making process of women's participation in marital infidelity. Due to the growing prevalence and negative effects of marital infidelity, it is important for both clinicians and researchers to understand its occurrence. Although there has been a significant amount of research on marital infidelity in recent years, there is not any significant research that looks at the process occurring in both the marital and extramarital relationships. This study focused on examining the process an individual goes through when making the decision to have an affair, particularly, how they were able to give themselves permission to have an affair. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four female participants who had participated in marital infidelity. The interviews were audio taped, transcribed, and analyzed using the transcendental phenomenological model (Moustakas, 1994). Four categories and 14 themes emerged, regarding the decision-making and permission-giving processes of women’s participation in marital infidelity. The women reported a lack of quality time spent with their husbands, as well as a lack of attention they received from their husbands. The women also discussed an inability to solve conflict within their marriage. The women reported developing relationships, outside of their marriage, either with ex-flames, old friends, or new friends, all of whom became their affair partner. The women reported the support of family and/or friends for the extramarital relationship, along with receiving positive attention from their affair partner. The women discussed the moral values as being a deterrent to marital infidelity, but did not perceive enough barriers or protective factors as preventing them from moving forward with the affair. Finally, the women described ways in which they were able to limit cognitive dissonance as a means of giving themselves permission to move forward with the affair. Clinical and research implications were discussed, as well as, the limitations of the current study.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T20:38:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ana Cristina Costa Figueiredo.pdf: 821603 bytes, checksum: 7b78919225430e5379784d86da503e29 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-11-22 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / Infidelity refers to any form of romantic and/or sexual involvement, for a short or a long period, which occurs while the individual is in a relationship with another person. It has several impacts, especially regarding the losses about what was expected for self, partner and relationship. Marital infidelity can be understand as an ambiguous loss, since even with the presence of the unfaithful partner, he is not seen in the same way, and changes occur in his role within the family. Since it involves ambivalence, it can result in disfranchised grief, a risk factor for complicated grief. Therefore, the aim of this study was to understand the experience of women who faced the infidelity of their spouses, and identify the losses involved in this process. Case studies were conducted with four straight women who discovered the infidelity of spouse or it was revealed. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed qualitatively based on theories that refer to marital relationships and grief. With the analysis of the cases, it was possible to realize that marital infidelity actually result in multiple losses. However, it may have positive aspects such as creativity and maturity, propelling changes. It was noticeable that all participants, somehow, value romantic love. On the other hand, historical influences regarding the naturalization of male sexual behavior are present in their speech. The inherent risks of disfranchised and self-disfranchised grief were confirmed, which may difficult the integration process of elaboration. The understanding of marital infidelity as ambiguous loss and disfranchised grief can help to validate this experience socially and intrapsychically, contributing to build a society that recognizes the mourning in its different manifestations. The results reaffirm the losses involved in the experience of women in the face of marital infidelity, and suggest the need for new empirical studies related to this subject / A infidelidade refere-se a qualquer forma de envolvimento romântico e/ou sexual, de curto ou longo período, que ocorre enquanto o indivíduo está em um relacionamento com outra pessoa. Seus impactos são diversos, especialmente no que se refere às perdas do que se esperava para si, o parceiro e o relacionamento. Pode-se compreender a infidelidade conjugal como uma perda ambígua, dado que mesmo com a presença do parceiro infiel, este não é visto da mesma maneira, ocorrendo mudanças em seu papel na família. Por envolver ambivalência, pode gerar luto não reconhecido, um fator de risco para o luto complicado. Diante disso, o objetivo do presente foi compreender a experiência de mulheres que vivenciaram a infidelidade de seus cônjuges e identificar as perdas envolvidas nesse processo. Foram realizados estudos de caso com quatro mulheres heterossexuais que tenham descoberto ou tenha sido revelada a infidelidade do cônjuge. As informações foram coletadas por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas e analisadas qualitativamente com base nas teorias que se referem a relacionamento conjugal e luto. Com a análise dos casos, foi possível perceber que a infidelidade conjugal realmente acarreta perdas múltiplas. Todavia, pode apresentar aspectos positivos, como criatividade e amadurecimento, sendo propulsora de mudanças. Foi perceptível que todas as participantes, de alguma forma, valorizam o amor romântico. Por outro lado, influências históricas no que se refere à naturalização do comportamento sexual masculino estão presentes em seus discursos. Foram confirmados os riscos inerentes ao não reconhecimento social ou intrapsíquico das perdas, o que pode dificultar o processo integrativo de elaboração. A compreensão da infidelidade conjugal como perda ambígua e luto não reconhecido pode auxiliar na validação social e intrapsíquica dessa vivência, contribuindo para a construção de uma sociedade que reconhece o luto em suas diferentes manifestações. Os resultados reafirmam as perdas envolvidas na vivência de mulheres diante da infidelidade conjugal e sugerem a necessidade de novos estudos empíricos referentes a esta temática