Psychology Research Digest
Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice - Vol 15, Iss 1
Couple and Family Psychology: Research and Practice is a scholarly journal publishing peer-reviewed papers representing the science and practice of family psychology. The journal is the official publication of the Society for Couple and Family Psychology and is intended to be a forum for scholarly dialogue regarding the most important emerging issues in the field, a primary outlet for research particularly as it impacts practice and for papers regarding education, public policy and the identity of the profession of family psychology.
Our love language: A systematic review of the association between observed couple communication and relationship satisfaction.
Romantic relationship satisfaction predicts many domains of well-being (Gustavson et al., 2016), and dyadic communication style is strongly linked to relationship satisfaction (Meeks et al., 1998). Extensive research utilizing self-report data replicates findings that positive (e.g., validating, supportive) forms of communication are related to higher satisfaction while forms of negative communication (e.g., criticism, withdrawal) are associated with lower satisfaction (Holman & Jarvis, 2003). Interestingly, observational methods show mixed results—engagement in negative styles is linked to higher satisfaction (Gottman & Krokoff, 1989). Extant research attributes these findings to method variability in observational research (e.g., discussion type, coding system). The present systematic review seeks to clarify the relationship between couples’ observed communication and relationship satisfaction. Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines (Page et al., 2021) using APA PsycInfo and APA PsycArticles databases, N = 28 articles met the inclusion criteria. Articles were longitudinal (N = 16) and cross-sectional (N = 16), included observations of couples in problem solving (N = 24), social support (N = 10), positive reminiscence (N = 3), and mutually satisfying (N = 1) discussions using varying coding techniques (N = 21). All articles showed support for the link between positive communication style and higher relationship satisfaction. The results also supported the association between negative communication and higher satisfaction, with the most support for its benefit during severe topic discussions. The role of other moderators (i.e., discussion type, stress, pregnancy intention, ethnicity, gender) as well as clinical and research implications will be explored. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Thu, 13 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Insecure attachment and mental health in married couples.
Insecure attachment has been found to affect an individual’s mental health. However, more studies are needed on how individual’s insecure attachment contributes to the partner’s mental health in couples. The present study examined the dyadic associations between insecure attachment and mental health in couples. Using data from 222 opposite-sex Turkish married couples (Mwives = 38.26 years, Mhusbands = 41.21), we sought to investigate whether individuals’ anxious attachment and avoidant attachment were associated with their own as well as with the spouses’ depression and anxiety. Actor–partner interdependence model analysis revealed that both husbands’ and wives’ anxious attachment were linked with their own depression and anxiety. Also, husbands’ anxious attachment was associated with wives’ anxiety. For avoidant attachment, both husbands’ and wives’ avoidant attachment were associated with their own depression, and husbands’ avoidant attachment was associated with their own anxiety. Anxious attachment explained more variance in anxiety than in depression, whereas avoidant attachment explained more variance in depression. The findings provide valuable insights for couple therapists and mental health professionals, emphasizing the consideration of partners’ anxious attachment when working with women who experience symptoms of anxiety. Integrating these findings into attachment-based couple interventions may prove useful in coping with symptoms associated with depression and anxiety. Overall, these findings contribute to a better understanding of the dynamics within insecure attachment and mental health, highlighting the importance of prioritizing the establishment of secure attachment for mental health. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Mon, 10 Mar 2025 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Examining psychological correlates of romantic satisfaction for first-time parents.
Prior research suggests that as many as seven out of 10 couples may experience a sharp decline in romantic satisfaction after having their first child. The present study examines three psychological factors that may be related to romantic satisfaction during the antepartum period: depressive symptoms, constructive communication, and psychological well-being. The present study utilizes baseline data from a pilot study of couples from varying socioeconomic status, cultural background, and sexual orientation expecting their first child (N = 66 expecting parents) who participated in a preventative program for first-time parents. The analyses revealed that constructive communication is significantly correlated with romantic satisfaction for both gestational and nongestational partners. These findings are important for clinicians working with expectant parents and may help inform the development of preventative interventions for the antepartum period. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Thu, 09 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Evaluating early coparenting using the Lausanne Trilogue Play observational procedure: Guidance for infant–family practitioners from an international coparenting collaborative.
Since the early 1990s, coparenting—a conceptual framework connecting clinical insights from structural family therapy to theory and research on the development of infants and toddlers within relationship systems—has brought new perspective to family and developmental science while hinting at ramifications for clinical practice. Coparenting theory and research evolved side by side with careful, intensive study of mother–father–child triangular relationships in families with very young children, work that expanded in recent years to include studies of other coparent–child triangular systems, such as those involving mothers, grandmothers, and infants. Until now, however, there has been no coordinated expert guidance for bringing concepts expounded in research studies of coparenting and triangular relationships to practitioners who work in infant–family mental health and family therapy contexts. In 2022, a collaborative of family-oriented infant mental health experts from seven countries, all bringing proficiency in assessing and working with coparenting and triangular family dynamics in research or clinical settings, organized to review and identify common agreed-upon behavioral manifestations of coparenting during triangular interactions. Recognizing four central dimensions capturing how coparents and children organize when interacting together as a triangular system (engagement, teamwork, conflict, and child focus), the International Coparenting Collaborative explains in this report how a standardized observational assessment, the Lausanne Trilogue Play, can be used to identify coparenting strengths and challenges and elevate practitioners’ attunement to coparenting dynamics within their therapeutic contexts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Thu, 20 Feb 2025 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Adaptative and maladaptive cognitive processing of trauma on relationship distress among community couples.
Trauma exposure is exceedingly common, with implications for both individual and couple functioning. How trauma-exposed individuals interpret or understand their traumatic experience can influence their beliefs about themselves and their romantic partners. This study examined the mediating role of maladaptive and adaptive approaches to cognitive processing of trauma (CPOT) on the association between posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and relationship distress among 55 different-sex community couples. Results demonstrated a significant partner effect from male partners’ PTSS to their female partners’ relationship distress, suggesting greater male partners’ PTSS was associated with increased levels of female partners’ relationship distress. Different patterns emerged for maladaptive and adaptive CPOT. For maladaptive CPOT, male and female partners’ PTSS were negatively related to their own maladaptive CPOT, whereas in the adaptive CPOT model, this was only observed for male partners. Across models, CPOT did not significantly mediate the association between PTSS and relationship distress. Findings underscore the significance of considering one’s partner during trauma recovery, as an individual’s PTSS are linked with both their own and their partner’s perception of relationship distress. Considering female partners were particularly affected by their male partners’ PTSS, this study supports the importance of assigned sex differences when understanding the broader interpersonal impacts of trauma. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Thu, 07 Nov 2024 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Navigating cultural conflict in interracial relationships.
It is becoming more common for people to be in romantic interracial relationships (i.e., relationships in which romantic partners have different racial identities) in the United States. However, people in interracial relationships experience additional challenges that those in same-race relationships do not face. These additional challenges, such as having to navigate conflict due to cultural differences, may threaten the relationship’s longevity. Ineffectively navigating cultural differences has the potential to negatively impact relationship quality (i.e., commitment and satisfaction). However, not all interracial relationships end, which suggests that how partners respond to conflict is important. That is, if people respond constructively to cultural conflict while inhibiting a destructive response, a process known as constructive accommodation, it may buffer against the negative effects of conflict on relationship quality. We predicted and found an interaction between perceptions of cultural conflict and constructive accommodation on relationship quality among people in interracial relationships. Such that, people who perceive greater constructive accommodation during high cultural conflict reported being more committed in their relationship compared to people engaging in low constructive accommodation. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
Publication date: Mon, 30 Jun 2025 00:00:00 GMT Access the article >>Your vision will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.
- Carl Jung, Modern Man in Search of a Soul (1933)
Reach Out