Thesis (Ph.D.)--Boston University. Note: missing pages: 40, 212, and 214. / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to investigate empirically whether there is an association between value system similarity and marital adjustment; and (2) to examine qualitatively the nature of that association. The relationship between mutual values and marital adjustment has long been assumed to be a strong one, although little research has been done to verify the assumption. The theoretical framework and empirical instrument developed by Milton Rokeach were used to define and measure the independent variable, value convergence. A value is defined as a belief centrally located in the belief system about how one ought to behave or about an end-state of existence which a person considers worth attaining. A value system is the rank order of a person's values in terms of their importance to him. Two separate value systems are postulated, a terminal value system (goals for living) and an instrumental value system (modes of behaving). The term, value convergence, refers to the degree of similarity or agreement in value systems existing between husband and wife. The conceptual approach and adjustment test of Harvey J. Locke were employed to define and measure the dependent variable, marital adjustment. The term, marital adjustment, refers to the level of adaptation of husband and wife in such a way as to resolve conflicts sufficiently so that both spouses feel satisfied with their marriage and with one another, develop common interests and activities, and feel that their marriage is fulfilling their expectations. Two major theoretical hypotheses were constructed which, summarily stated, posit a greater degree of terminal and instrumental value convergence between well-adjusted than maladjusted spouses. Control hypotheses were also theoretically generated on certain demographic variables in order to check on the uniformity of the sample groups. In order to test the general hypothesis an investigation was conducted with 50 married couples, all of whom reside in a twelve-town area in southeast Massachusetts. Twenty-five maladjusted couples were selected from consecutive admissions for marriage counseling at the Plymouth Area Mental Health Center. Twenty-five well-adjusted couples were drawn from a subject pool of 35 happily married couples recommended for participation in the project by clergymen. The 25 couples scoring highest on the Locke Marital Relationship Inventory were selected to comprise the well-adjusted group. Data on couples' value systems were obtained by using the Rokeach Value Survey and a semi-projective sentence completion instrument designed by the researcher. The results of the quantitative investigation were found to be positive and significant. The results showed that well-adjusted couples had more similar terminal and instrumental values than did maladjusted couples. Like instrumental values were further found to be more strongly associated with good marital adjustment than like terminal values. In other words, it is important that couples agree on their goals for living but, even more crucial, that they concur regarding modes of behaving. The findings from the qualitative inquiry into the nature of the association between the variables revealed that well-adjusted couples with like values differ from their counterparts in that they (1) perceive the future positively sharing similar goals, (2) make decisions conjointly agreeing on means, and (3) experience a high degree of marital unity based on common goals and shared activities. On the basis of the findings from the quantitative and qualitative investigations, it was concluded that level of marital adjustment is positively related to degree of value convergence. Value system similarity appears to be important as two people interact with one another over a long period of time, and as they engage in long range planning. / 2999-01-01

Literature on identities in marriage has suggested that there is a tension between the interpretation of marriage as a unity between two partners, and the importance of each partner within the marriage maintaining his/her individuality. By drawing on data from seven semistructured qualitative interviews with married couples or couples involved in marriage-like relationships I examine some ways in which these boundaries between individual and collective identities and associated epistemic rights are drawn or become treated as blurred. Specifically, I use a conversation analytic approach to examine two sets of practices that reveal how this tension is made observable and is negotiated: 1) the use of personal and collective pronouns and 2) shifts in gaze direction. In contrast to previous research on this topic, I focus on the exploration of these phenomena in their moment-by-moment construction in talk-in-interaction. Based on my findings, I conclude that these practices serve to demonstrate the oriented-to ways in which marriage involves compromising one’s own individual identity or epistemic rights while becoming a part of a unit and show how and where this is done in interaction.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Columbia University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references.

A typology of marital dyads derived from Kelly's (1955) Personal Construct Psychology was used to investigate the communicative behaviors of married companions. Four groups based on Kelly's Commonality (dyadic similarity) and Sociality (dyadic understanding) corollaries were contrasted: similar-understanding, dissimilar-understanding, similar-misunderstanding, and dissimilar-misunderstanding couples. It was expected that dyadic understanding would contribute more to self-disclosure, cooperative involvement, and marital satisfaction than dyadic similarity. Furthermore, it was anticipated that couples high in understanding and low in similarity would represent optimally functioning couples, as evidenced by disclosure, satisfaction, and involvement with each other. Sixty-three married couples who had known each other at least two years completed questionnaire items assessing demographic variables, marital satisfaction (Dyadic Adjustment Scale) and self-reported communication behaviors (Partner Communication Inventory, Dyadic Disclosure Inventory). Each spouse also completed an 8 X 8 Repertory Grid and predicted the mate's responses on the Rep Grid. Subjects then participated in three different audio-taped discussion tasks (an informal conversation, a consensus decision-making task, and a role-played conflict-resolution scene) which were rated for avoidant, competitive, and cooperative responses, as well as overall self-disclosure. Although understanding facilitated disclosure in conflict situations and similarity fostered marital satisfaction, communicative behaviors generally reflected the joint influence of both similarity and understanding. Dissimilar-understanding couples were intensely involved with each other and freely disclosed, but were not highly satisfied. Similar-understanding couples were the most content and had the greatest sense of validation as a couple. Similar-misunderstanding couples restricted their relationship by attempting to avoid expected confrontations. Dissimilar-misunderstanding couples viewed themselves in a socially desirable light, tried to maintain congenial, nonintimate interactions, and were moderately contented. Implications for therapeutic programs, for Kelly's theory, and for future research were discussed.

Attitudes of husband and wife regarding the use of the bank credit card were compared and related to the couple's marital happiness rating. The sample consisted of 40 young married couples residing in campus married student housing at Utah State University during Fall Quarter 1970. Subjects had at least one child and we r e U. S. born citizens between the ages of 20 and 35. The instruments used we r e: (1) a background questionnaire, (2) a marital happiness rating scale, and (3) a series of eight case study situations . The statistical tests us ed were the paired-comparison t-test and the Pearson r. No significant difference was found between attitudes of husband and wife regarding the use of the bank credit card. There was no significant relationship between attitudes of husband and wife regarding the use of the bank credit card and couples expressing a "Very Happy" marital happiness rating or couples expressing other than a "Very Happy" marital happiness rating.

abstract: This study investigated the potential influences of a marital interaction involving affectionate touch and/or positive relationship-focused conversation on physiological reactivity to a subsequent laboratory stress task, and whether depressive symptoms moderated these relations. It was hypothesized that 1) the stress task would cause cardiac sympathetic activation and cardiac parasympathetic withdrawal; and that physical affection and/or positive conversation would 2) reduce sympathetic activation as indicated by cardiac interbeat interval (IBI), cardiac pre-ejection period (PEP), and finger pulse transit time (FPTT) and 3) reduce parasympathetic withdrawal (as indicated by respiratory sinus arrhythmia; RSA) in response to stress. Further, we expected that, compared to those lower in reported depressive symptoms, those higher in depressive symptoms 4) would show blunted cardiovascular activation in response to stress across experimental conditions; and after engaging in a positive marital exchange, 5) would demonstrate a smaller interaction-related reduction in stress-related sympathetic activation; but 6) show no difference in interaction-related reduction of stress-related parasympathetic withdrawal. Participants were 183 married couples who were at least moderately happy in their marriages and in generally good health. Participants completed a measure of depression (among other questionnaires) in an online survey, then attended a 3-hour laboratory session. After measuring baseline physiology with spouses in separate rooms, couples were then randomly assigned to either touch (while sitting quietly, then hug), talk (positive conversation, but no touch), both (touch while talking, then hug), or neither (sit quietly without touching or talking). Next, participants separately performed a stress-inducing speech task about their spouses’ strengths and weaknesses. Physiological indicators were recorded throughout the stress task. While positive conversation reduced husbands’ stress-related parasympathetic withdrawal, it predicted greater stress-related activation in wives’ PEP response. Stress reactivity (as indicated by FPTT) was reduced in husbands with lower depressive symptoms when the marital exchange included only touch or only talk, whereas for husbands with more depressive symptoms, there were no effects of the marital interaction. For wives, depressive symptoms predicted blunted cardiovascular activation regardless of positive interaction condition, as illustrated by smaller stress-related reduction in FPTT responses. Furthermore, higher self-reported depressive symptoms predicted larger interaction-related decreases in stress-related IBI responses in wives who experienced spousal touch. This study builds on previous work and is the first to explore how depressive symptoms may influence the relations between affectionate touch and stress reactivity. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2018

abstract: Prior research on consumer behavior in health insurance markets has primarily focused on individual decision making while relying on strong parametric assumptions about preferences. The aim of this dissertation is to improve the traditional approach in both dimensions. First, I consider the importance of joint decision-making in individual insurance markets by studying how married couples coordinate their choices in these markets. Second, I investigate the robustness of prior studies by developing a non-parametric method to assess decision-making in health insurance markets. To study how married couples make choices in individual insurance markets I estimate a stochastic choice model of household demand that takes into account spouses' risk aversion, spouses' expenditure risk, risk sharing, and switching costs. I use the model estimates to study how coordination within couples and interaction between couples and singles affects the way that markets adjust to policies designed to nudge consumers toward choosing higher value plans, particularly with respect to adverse selection. Finally, to assess consumer decision-making beyond standard parametric assumptions about preferences, I use second--order stochastic dominance rankings. Moreover, I show how to extend this method to construct bounds on the welfare implications of choosing dominated plans. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Economics 2020

The objective of this study was to determine whether certain socio-cultural factors tend to influence family planning behavior and attitudes of certain married couples at Utah State University. Sociacultural factors considered in this study were: ethnic background, religious preference, level of education, and income. These sociocultural factors (independent variables) were examined from the standpoint of their influence upon one or more of the following dependent variables: the use or non-use of family planning, the extent to which family planning is used, attitude toward the most important source of information for family planning, and attitude regarding the single method which is considered to be best by respondents. The findings show that the socio-cultural variable Religious Preference was the main independent variable which proved to be significantly associated with the following dependent variables: sources of information for birth control (formal or informal); extent to which birth control is used (continually or periodically), and attitudes regarding the best method of birth control among women (artificial or nonartificial), Specifically, these findings show that the Catholics favored formal sources, while the Protestants favored informal sources of obtaining information about birth control. Catholics tended to use periodic methods of birth control , including rhythm, abstinence and non-use, while Protestants mainly used continual methods of birth control (primarily artificial). The last significant statistical difference showed the preference of Protestant women for artificial methods of birth control more than Catholic women. It was concluded that religion is still an important agent of socialization relating to birth control behavior and attitudes.

The problem of this study was to determine if the sex role identification, age, education, and income of employed married couples were related to their perception of who should and does perform household tasks. The forty-five couples were volunteers from organizations for working women. Each spouse completed a Bem Sex Role Inventory and a Household Task Inventory. Using Chi-square and t-tests no significant differences were found between sex role identification, education level, income level, and the sharing of household tasks. When a Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was used, age and sharing of household tasks were found to have an inverse relationship with the young sharing more tasks. The study concluded that couples expect household tasks to be shared but females tend to perform the traditional feminine tasks and males the traditional masculine tasks.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Union Institute & University, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 142-177).