The Role of Relational Spirituality in Happily-Married Couples' Observed Problem-Solving

摘要

Family scholars have argued that the role of religion in the marital relationship cannot be overlooked because it represents an integral part of many couples' daily lives. To address how couples actually integrate both their own and their partner's religious beliefs and practices into their interactions as spouses, the current study examined the combined and interactive influences of husbands' and wives' relational spirituality beliefs and practices on their observed problem-solving behaviors in a sample of 58 happily married couples. Using Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIM), we found both spouses' relational spirituality beliefs and practices were linked to how they handled conflict. Further, we found consistent evidence that the manner in which spouses' relational spirituality beliefs and practices interacted had important and unique implications for how they behaved toward each other. Findings suggest that simultaneous consideration of both spouses' religious beliefs and practices and how these might interact is critical when explicating marital functioning.