In this study, the proposed model was tested and focused on Vietnamese spouses who which participate in the life adaptation and language study courses in Kaohsiung. 213 foreign spouses were asked to answer questionnaires and effective respondents were 187 sets. The complex data was collected and analyzed by One-way ANOVA, T-test, Pearson correlation analysis and multi-regression regression analysis with SPSS. This study is focused on two social psychological factors: marital expectation and gender role attitude, and discusses the relationship between these two variables and marital quality. The conclusions of this research summarize as following: ¤@¡BFor Vietnamese spouses, the length of time that acquainted before married is significant toward the economical expectations of marital expectations. ¤G¡BEducational degree is significant toward the gender role attitudes for Vietnamese spouses; the lower educational degree that Vietnamese spouses have, the higher traditional gender role attitudes they have. ¤T¡BThe methods Vietnamese spouses adopt in order to go to Taiwan are significant toward the familial roles, extrafamilial roles and stereotypes of male/female characteristics and behaviors of gender role attitudes. ¥|¡BThe marital expectations of the Vietnamese spouses are correlated with their marital quality. ¤­¡BThe gender role attitudes of the Vietnamese spouses are highly correlated with their marital quality. ¤»¡BThe reason that Vietnamese spouses getting married is falling in love, marital expectations, and gender role attitudes are positive predict variables towards marital quality. ¤C¡BThe familial roles of gender role attitudes, and getting married by falling in love are also positive predict variables towards value consensus, interaction of spouses, marital happiness, and marital stability of marital quality. Base on the conclusions from this study and suggestions for spouses of transnational marriages, administration and guidance system of government and further studies.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- McMaster University, 1998. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 102-103). Also available via World Wide Web.

O objetivo desta pesquisa foi investigar a qualidade conjugal nos relacionamentos contemporâneos. Para tal, dois artigos foram elaborados. O primeiro apresenta uma revisão sistemática da literatura com o intuito de mapear o que é investigado como relevante a respeito das temáticas associadas à qualidade, ajustamento e satisfação conjugal. O segundo apresenta um estudo empírico com 1476 sujeitos, no qual investigou-se a associação entre as variáveis idade, tempo de duração da conjugalidade, presença ou não de filhos, salário pessoal mensal, percepção sobre a conjugalidade dos pais e a qualidade conjugal que vivenciam. Uma análise discriminante entre grupos de alta e baixa qualidade conjugal também foi realizada. Os resultados refletem a presença de múltiplos fatores que circunscrevem a qualidade conjugal dos participantes e que expressam a complexidade de investigar e compreender esse fenômeno. / The objective of this research was to investigate marital quality in contemporary relationships. To this, two articles were prepared. The first presents a systematic literature review in order to map what is investigated as relevant regarding issues associated with quality, adjustment and marital satisfaction. The second presents a study of 1476 participants in which we investigated the association between the variables age, duration of the marital relationship, presence of children, monthly personal income, perception of parental marital and marital quality that experience. A discriminant analysis between high and low marital quality groups was also realized. The results reflect the presence of multiple factors that circumscribe the marital quality and express the complexity of investigate and understand this phenomenon.

O objetivo desta pesquisa foi investigar a qualidade conjugal nos relacionamentos contemporâneos. Para tal, dois artigos foram elaborados. O primeiro apresenta uma revisão sistemática da literatura com o intuito de mapear o que é investigado como relevante a respeito das temáticas associadas à qualidade, ajustamento e satisfação conjugal. O segundo apresenta um estudo empírico com 1476 sujeitos, no qual investigou-se a associação entre as variáveis idade, tempo de duração da conjugalidade, presença ou não de filhos, salário pessoal mensal, percepção sobre a conjugalidade dos pais e a qualidade conjugal que vivenciam. Uma análise discriminante entre grupos de alta e baixa qualidade conjugal também foi realizada. Os resultados refletem a presença de múltiplos fatores que circunscrevem a qualidade conjugal dos participantes e que expressam a complexidade de investigar e compreender esse fenômeno. / The objective of this research was to investigate marital quality in contemporary relationships. To this, two articles were prepared. The first presents a systematic literature review in order to map what is investigated as relevant regarding issues associated with quality, adjustment and marital satisfaction. The second presents a study of 1476 participants in which we investigated the association between the variables age, duration of the marital relationship, presence of children, monthly personal income, perception of parental marital and marital quality that experience. A discriminant analysis between high and low marital quality groups was also realized. The results reflect the presence of multiple factors that circumscribe the marital quality and express the complexity of investigate and understand this phenomenon.

A theoretical model of eleven antecedents of marital quality (education, family life cycle, sex, work status, sex role attitude, social network, role accumulation, role conflict, parental competence, parental strain, and marital strain) was developed and tested using Path Analysis. Subjects were 119 married couples (238 individuals) who had at least one child. They completed the Parental and Marital Interaction Questionnaire which had measures for each of the antecedent variables.

Perceiving shared power in marriage has been linked to higher marital quality and lower attachment insecurity. Yet limited research has examined whether perception of power has a longitudinal influence on how both spouses' perceptions play a role in both spouses' outcomes. To address previous limitations, I utilized 319 couples (94.7% retention from Wave 1) from the Flourishing Families Project to estimate bi-yearly (Waves 1, 3, and 5) and yearly (Waves 3-5) longitudinal actor-partner interdependence models. Reporting shared power in marriage was linked to the actors' higher marital quality and lower attachment insecurity over time (though less consistently for attachment insecurity). Longitudinal partner effects and indirect effects were also found from reports of shared marital power to both marital quality and attachment insecurity over time. Little evidence was found for bidirectionality. The combined evidence suggests that power dynamics in a marriage are an important predictor of couples' overall relational well-being, and not simply a byproduct of other well-being indicators. Husbands and wives should mutually seek to help each other feel empowered in a relationship to reap the benefits of marital quality and secure attachment.

Marital roles have become a subject of major concern in recent years. Many critiques consider traditional marriage roles to be responsible for hindering appropriate social-emotional development of the wife, in particular, and also the husband. Past research in assessing the relationship between marital roles and the happiness and well-being of husbands and wives is limited in quantity and generally is inconclusive or controversial. This study was designed to clarify the relationship between marriage roles and two dependent variables, marital happiness and self concept. The sample population consisted of 124 volunteer couples selected from the teaching staffs of eight school districts in Southeastern Idaho and Northern Utah. Each participant provided information for this study by completing a questionnaire, the Tennessee Self Concept Scale, the Marriage Adjustment Scale, and the Marriage Role Expectation Inventory. Forty-three variables were generated from these measures which, when factor analyzed produced 12 factors for husbands and 10 factors for wives, served as dependent and independent variables for this study. Stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to identify relationships between dependent variables (self concept and marital happiness of husbands and wives) and independent variables {i.e., level of education; hours spent as an employee, religious volunteer, and in community service; freedom to choose present role; income level). Husbands and wives were assessed independent of each other. None of the independent variables explained a significant amount of the variance on marital happiness or self concept neither when considered alone nor when stepped together in the multiple regression model. Thus, no significant relationship was determined between marital roles and marital happiness or self concept. Recommendations were made for studying more diversified populations and for controlling sample bias resulting from the use of volunteers.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to compare couples in different phases of marriage with the primary goal of contributing to our understanding of marital quality throughout the life span. Rusbult's investment theory (Rusbult, 1980, 1983; Rusbult & Buunk, 1993), which predicts specific outcomes concerning relationship satisfaction, commitment, and stability, served as the guiding theory behind this effort. Assumptions derived from the theory were tested with couples in three distinct phases of marriage selected from the first wave of the National Survey of Families and Households (Sweet, Bumpass, & Call, 1988). Short-term couples consisted of husbands and wives married between 4 and 6 years, intermediate couples consisted of those married between 20 and 25 years, and long-term couples consisted of those married 45 years or more. Couples were compared with regard to four specific aspects of their relationships: conflict frequency, conflict resolution, satisfaction, and perceptions of the quality of alternatives to their current marriages. Data generated from spouses' averaged scores were analyzed using a series of one-way ANOVAs and paired t-tests. Results from this sample of respondents clearly revealed that long-term couples engaged in less conflict, utilized different conflict resolution strategies, were more satisfied with their marriages, and perceived alternatives to their relationships as less favorable than younger couples. In addition, when husbands' and wives' scores on the above measures were compared, long-term couples exhibited fewer differences than younger couples. Findings from this study are discussed in light of existing research and theory. / Ph. D.

Remarriages account for about one third of all marriages in the United States, however the research on remarried couple outcomes is limited, particularly with regard to finances and financial conflict. The family economic stress model theorizes that economic hardship promotes economic strain, which in turn promotes emotional distress and conflict patterns that have negative impacts on relationship satisfaction and relationship stability. This study used secondary cross-sectional dyadic data to conduct an actor-partner interdependence path analysis of 158 remarried couples to examine the direct and indirect effects of each spouse's perception of economic strain on their own marital satisfaction and stability, as well as on their spouse's marital satisfaction and stability, with financial conflict as an intermediary variable. Tests for indirect effects indicated that financial conflict strongly influences the relationship between economic strain and the marital outcomes (i.e., satisfaction and stability); none of the direct paths between economic strain and the marital outcomes were significant when accounting for financial conflict as a mechanism. Results indicated that, in the context of a remarriage, a person's perception of how much they have conflict about finances is a key mechanism that explains the association between that person's perception of economic strain and their marital satisfaction and stability, regardless of household income and marriage length. Clinicians who lack specific training in financial management but work with remarried couples experiencing economic strain and financial conflict may still be able to intervene effectively to improve relationship quality by helping spouses reduce interpersonal conflict. / Master of Science / Remarriages account for about one third of all marriages in the United States, however the research on the satisfaction (overall relationship quality) and stability (propensity for divorce) of remarried couples is limited, particularly with regard to disagreements about their finances (financial conflict). This study analyzed data from 158 remarried couples to examine the possible effects of each spouse's views of their perceived inability to meet their financial demands (economic strain) on their own, as well as their spouse's, marital satisfaction and stability (marital outcomes), with their perceived financial conflict acting as a mediating variable between economic strain and marital outcomes. Results indicated that, in the context of a remarriage, financial conflict strongly influenced the relationship between economic strain and marital outcomes, regardless of household income and marriage length, such that even though there is still a relationship between economic strain and marital outcomes apart from financial conflict, it is weaker than when financial conflict is included. In other words, risk of dissatisfaction and divorce are less about how financially strained a remarried couple perceives they are, and more about how frequently the couple perceives they have conflict about finances. Therefore, the results of this study indicated financial conflict frequency is an important mechanism for understanding how economic strain can influence remarital outcomes for both spouses. Clinicians working with remarried couples to improve their relationships, but lack specific training in financial management, may still be able to intervene effectively around the financial conflict.