Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Recent Advances In The Understanding Of Relationship Communication During Military Deployment, Steven L. Sayers, Galena K. Rhoades

Psychology: Faculty Scholarship

In recent decades, there has been a dramatic increase in the ability of service members and their intimate partners to communicate while the service member is deployed to a combat zone. Communication among partners is a crucial aspect of intimate relationships that has been demonstrated to be highly associated with couples’ satisfaction. In addition, it is often cited by unhappy partners as a primary relationship problem. This special section of the Journal of Family Psychology presents five articles investigating deployment communication among service members and their intimate partners. The studies address the content and goals of deployment communication, the relations …

Ballroom Dancing In Conjunction With Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy: Increasing Emotional Connections Through Non-Verbal Communication, Shana B. Kronish

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy (EFCT), Dance Movement Therapy (DMT), and ballroom dance have each been found to be beneficial in developing individual and interpersonal verbal and non-verbal communication and emotional awareness; however, very little research has been performed on the combined therapeutic use of any of these modalities. In this study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with therapists and ballroom dance instructors who work with couples in order to facilitate dialogue regarding the limitations and benefits of therapy and ballroom dance. The core theme of this study was the ‘Interest in Application.’ The eleven additional themes that evolved were ‘Benefits of …

Social Media And Relationship Development, Gretchen Kelmer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined the use of social media to represent romantic relationships among a diverse, national sample (N=831) of Facebook users aged 20-37. Taken together, results from this study indicate that relationship representation via Facebook is associated with various aspects of commitment, including couple identity, prioritization of one’s relationship, and commitment to the future, and was also associated with stability of the relationship over time. Social media relationship representation was also found to be associated with lower levels of sexual infidelity, alternative partner monitoring, and partner’s jealousy, as well as higher levels of perceived social pressure from friends and …

Relationship Adjustment In African American/White Interracial Couples, Elizabeth Rose Muino

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Interracial intimate partnerships are at greater risk for relationship dissolution (i.e., divorce or permanent separation in cohabitating couples) than their endogamous counterparts (Bratter & King, 2008). However, a disparity in dissolution rates exists between African American male/White female pairings and African American female/White male pairings. This study sought to elucidate psychological variables that may be related to this sizable discrepancy. It was hypothesized that differences between these pairings exist with regard to color-blindness, empathy, sexism, and relationship adjustment. It was further hypothesized that color-blindness, empathy, and sexism, as controlled for by gender and race, would predict relationship adjustment.

Participants included …

Thank You, Dear: Examining The Association Between Gratitude And Relationship Well-Being, Erica Pearse Ragan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current study replicated and extended existing research on gratitude by examining the ways in which gratitude is related to both individual and relationship well-being. A total of 387 participants completed the pre assessment and were randomized into the study, with 251 participants completing the full study (i.e., pre, post, and follow-up assessments). Participants were randomly assigned to list relationship-focused gratitudes, amusing events, or general events that happened during their day for 14 days. The differential impact of the three interventions on both individual and relationship variables was investigated. The relationship-focused and general events conditions experienced decreased negative affect from …

Relational Financial Satisfaction Of Cohabiting Couples, Christine C. Mcdunn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The current study tested a model of factors affecting cohabiting couples' relational financial satisfaction, defined as the contentment an individual has with how financial issues are handled within his or her domestic romantic relationship, and examined the relations within these factors. This study was a cross-sectional online survey of 266 participants (81% female; 85% Caucasian) recruited from listservs and subsequent snowball sampling. Measures assessed couples' financial strain, dedication commitment, financial conflict, financial trust, financial equality and financial communication. Relational financial satisfaction (RFS) was significantly related to financial conflict, financial strain and dedication commitment. Financial conflict mediated the association between …