Abstract
Previous studies reveal that marital satisfaction and aggression are predictors of marital dissolution (Rogge & Bradbury, 1999). The current study explored the relationship between marital satisfaction and aggression in marital conflict. Participants that reported less than excellent marital satisfaction were expected to be more likely to demonstrate aggression in conflict resolution than those with excellent marital satisfaction. Participants were respondents to the National Comorbidity Survey (N= 1988) (Kessler, 2000). Moderate to extreme aggression tended to occur in marriages with less than excellent marital satisfaction. Future research should incorporate causes that lead to aggression and marital dissatisfaction.
An Investigation of the Relationship Between Marital Satisfaction and Levels of Aggression in
Marital Conflict Resolution
Marital dissolution is a major social issue affecting Americans. In 2006, 7.4% of the U.S. population was married. The same year 3.6% of the population was divorced (National Center for Health Statistics, 2006). Therefore, millions of Americans were divorced in the span of just one year. Research has been done to understand the growing rate of divorce. The issue negatively affects a large amount of people, understanding the factors surrounding divorce is imperative. Aggression and marital satisfaction are two main factors that influence divorce. Empirical studies indicate that the two factors, aggression and marital satisfaction, coincide with one another to influence marital dissolution.
Psychological disorders have been associated with the prominence of divorce in the nation. A study was conducted to explore the relationship between marital satisfaction and psychological disorders (Kessler, 2000). Researchers used the National Comorbidity Survey. The sample was composed of married respondents in the U.S (N = 2237). Participants responded to questionnaires and diagnosis-based interviews. Results found that bipolar disorder, alcohol abuse disorder, and generalized anxiety disorders have a significant relationship with marital distress (Whisman, 2007). Psychological disorders only account for a quantity of individuals with marital distress. These findings suggest that the divorce rate is influenced by many factors including psychological disorder.
Chatav and Whisman (2007) revealed that psychological disorders are associated with marital dissatisfaction. Similar to the previous study, the sample was taken from the National Comorbidity (N = 5877). The relationship between marital dissolution and psychological disorders had two significant moderators, race and substance abuse by parents (Chatav & Whisman, 2007). Mood disorder, substance abuse, and anxiety linked to marital distress and to marital dissatisfaction. Therefore, the report of marital distress impacts the report of marital dissatisfaction. The study further supports that psychological disorders are significantly linked with marital dissolution. The negative affects of psychological disorders detrimentally influenced marital satisfaction. Psychological disorders often cause negative behaviors within the individual. The negative behaviors have detrimental influences on marital satisfaction and dissolution.
Further study into marital satisfaction reveals significant predictors to marital dissolution. Rogge and Bradbury (1999) discovered key predictors in marital dissolution. The participants were couples recruited from advertisements (N = 112). The study measured marital satisfaction, aggression between partners, anger, and coping styles with marital conflict (Rogge & Bradbury, 1999). The participants filled out self-reporting questionnaires every six months. Four years into the study 38% of the participants were divorced or separated. The initial marital satisfaction was able to predict 46% of marital satisfaction after 4 years of marriage. The two prominent predictors of marital dissolution were aggression and poor communication. Yet, the most influential predictor of marital dissatisfaction and marital dissolution was aggression. The study proposed that aggression, above all other predictors, could be further investigated to understand the detrimental influence aggression has on marital satisfaction.
The power of aggression, the most prominent predictor of marital dissolution, must be analyzed. Aggression is associated with psychological factors, similar to marital satisfaction. Papp, Goeke-Morey, and Cummings (2007) sought out to further understand the effect of psychological distress on aggression in marital conflict. The sample consisted of couples from a larger study (N = 200). Researchers measured psychological distress and marital satisfaction through initial questionnaires. The final measure was conflict tactics. The participants reported conflict tactics over the span of 15 days. The measure of conflict tactics reported marital conflict and strategies for dealing through self-report checklist. A significant relationship between psychological distress and conflict tactics was found. Psychological distress was able to predict the type of conflict tactic an individual would utilize in marital conflict (Papp, Goeke-Morey, & Cummings 2007). Along with marital distress, psychological distress plays a role in conflict resolution. Psychological distress influences aggression, like aggression influence marital dissolution. Other psychological factors influence aggression.
Schudlich, Papp, and Cummings (2004) present dsyphoria as another psychological factor that influences aggression. The sample consisted of couples participating in an ongoing longitudinal study that chose to participate in a study dealing with conflict resolution and dysphoria (N = 534). Researchers measured dysphoria (depressive symptoms), marital adjustment, and conflict. Participants were tested in a laboratory setting with questionnaires and individual interviews. Findings cited men reported more dysphoria than women. Men experiencing dysphoria demonstrated negative conflict strategies and negative emotions toward the marriage. Therefore, the depressed men view marriage as less satisfactory than non-depressed men. Women experiencing dysphoria demonstrated less productive conflict strategies. The findings of this study suggest that more than one psychological impacts aggression in marital conflict resolution.
In 1997, a study was conducted to investigate moderators in the relationship between marital satisfaction and aggression (Byrne & Arias, 1997).The participants were couples recruited from advertisements (N = 136). Researchers measured marital distress and types of aggression used in conflict through questionnaires. Results found marital satisfaction significantly correlated with violence attribution, which partner was to blame for the conflict. Marital dissatisfaction strongly effected the wife's physical aggression. The more the wife was dissatisfied with the marriage, the more physically aggressive she was. The effect increased if the husband was to blame for the wife's negative behavior. The study emphasized attribution of blame as a moderator to this relationship. The study exposed the relationship between marital satisfaction and aggression.
The extent that conflict influences marital satisfaction is imperative to further develop knowledge of the relationship. Ridley, Wilhem, and Surra (2000) measured marital satisfaction, financial satisfaction, and conflict responses. The sample consisted of recruited middle-class couples (N = 346). The participants responded to the measures through individual interviews and questionnaires. The results support that the conflict response of distancing oneself leads to more aggression and less satisfaction (Ridley, Wilhem, & Surra, 2001). A significant relationship was revealed between less positive conflict responses and less marital satisfaction. The findings of the study suggest that negative conflict responses have a negative impact on marital satisfaction. The findings also support the premise that conflict or aggression is significantly related to marital satisfaction.
Previous research associates marital satisfaction and aggression as predictors of marital dissolution. The purpose of the current study is to further explore the relationship between marital satisfaction and aggression in marital conflict. Previous research found that marital dissatisfaction and aggression detrimental influence marital outcomes. The current study will focus on how certain levels of aggression related to marital satisfaction. Spouses that report less than excellent marital satisfaction are hypothesized to demonstrate more aggression in conflict resolution than those with excellent marital satisfaction are expected to.
Method
Sample and Participants
The participants were respondents to the National Comorbidity Survey (Kessler, 2000). The survey was conducted at Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, between September 14, 1990 and February 6, 1992. The participants' age ranged from 15 to 54 years old. The average age was 35.75 (SD=9.041). There were 919 males and 1069 females. The sample was drawn from respondents to the variables of interest.
Procedure
The first variable of interest is marital satisfaction. The two questions respondents answered were “All in all, how satisfied are you with this relationship?” and “Overall, how satisfied are you with your marriage?” (Kessler, 2000). The responses included very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, not very satisfied, and not at all satisfied. The questions were combined to measure overall marital satisfaction. Overall marital satisfaction was recoded to indicate excellent or less than excellent. Participants with a marriage rating as excellent initially rated marriage as very satisfying. Participants with a marriage rating as less than excellent initially rated marriage as somewhat satisfying, not very satisfying, or not at all satisfying.
The second variable of interest is aggression in marital conflict. Three questions in the National Comorbidity measured aggression. For each question, the respondent was told “People handle disagreements in many different ways. Looking at List (A,B,or C), when you have a disagreement with your (spouse/partner), how often do you do any of the things on this list?” (Kessler, 2000). List A represented mild aggression. List A included aggressive responses in the form of insulting, swearing, sulking, refusing to talk, stomping out of the room, threatening to hit, doing or saying something to spite, smashing, or kicking something in anger (Kessler, 2000). List B represented moderate aggression. List B included pushing, grabbing, shoving, throwing something, slapping, or spanking (Kessler, 2000). List C represented extreme aggression. List C included kicking, biting, hitting with a fist, trying to hit with something, beating up, chocking, burning, or scalding (Kessler, 2000). The respondents responded as aggression often occurs, sometimes occurs, rarely occurs, or never occurs. The responses were recoded as happens or does not happen. Participants with a response of aggression happens initially reported aggression as often occurs, sometimes occurs, or rarely occurs. A participant with a response of does not happen initially recorded aggression as never occurs.
Results
A chi-square test-of-independence compared marital satisfaction and aggression level in marital conflict resolution. Excellent and less than excellent marital satisfaction was tested with no aggression, mild aggression, moderate aggression, and extreme aggression.
There was a significant relationship between marital satisfaction and aggression, c²(3, N= 1972) = 26.196, p < 0.001. This significance was visible within moderate and extreme aggression. The relationship was significant in participants that reported both excellent and less than excellent marital satisfaction. The relationship between marital satisfaction and mild or no aggression was not significant.
Moderate to extreme aggression tended to occur more often when marital satisfaction was less than excellent. Participants that reported less than excellent marital satisfaction will more likely demonstrate aggression than those with excellent marital satisfaction.
Discussion
Marital satisfaction and aggression have been linked with divorced (Rogge & Bradbury, 1999). An individual's conflict strategy may predict marital satisfaction (Ridley, Wilhem, & Surra, 2001). The current study hypothesized that marital satisfaction and aggression in marital conflict are related.
Results suggest aggression and marital satisfaction are significantly related. Individuals in less than excellent marriages report more aggressive behaviors than individuals with excellent marital satisfaction. This significance was only found in those participants reporting moderate to extreme aggression. Within none to mild aggression there was no significant relationship with marital satisfaction.
The current study relied solely on the participant's one time self-report of marital satisfaction and aggression. Heyman, Feldbau-Kohn, Ehrensaft, Langhinrichsen, and O'Leary (2001) investigated if self-report questionnaires can truly measure marital distress and abuse. The participants' marriages length ranged from 1 to 7 years (N = 148). Findings support that there is an inconsistency between abuse occurrence and the impact of the abuse. Questionnaires were also found to over-diagnose distress in comparison to interview (Heyman, Feldbau-Kohn, Ehrensaft, Langhinrichsen, & O'Leary, 2001). The results suggest that self-report may not be as valid as in-person interviews. The current study utilized self-report questionnaires that may not have been completely valid.
Ehrensaft and Vivian (1996) scrutinized the reasons that individuals did not report aggression as a marital problem. Researchers utilized 136 couples seeking marital therapy as the sample. Results revealed that low frequency of aggression as the main reason for not reporting aggression as a marital problem. Severe aggression was more likely to be reported as a problem than mild aggression (Ehrensaft & Vivian, 1996). This could account for the low significance in the relationship between mild aggression and marital satisfaction in the current study.
Furthermore, self-reporting excellent marital satisfaction may have influenced the participants to report lower levels of aggression to maintain congruency. Similarly, self-reporting higher levels of aggression may have influenced the participants to report lower levels of marital satisfaction to maintain congruency. Self- report questionnaires may not be as valid in comparison to behavioral measures. To obtain a more valid measure of aggression and marital satisfaction behavioral measures could be incorporated.
This study does not account for which variable precedes the other. Future research should determine which variable tends to occur before the other. Also researchers should integrate the origins of the conflict that lead to aggression and marital dissatisfaction.
References
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