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Volume 15 - Articles-1404                   MEJDS (2025) 15: 111 | Back to browse issues page

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Karami M, Karami J, Akbari M. Investigating the Effectiveness of Emotion-Oriented Couple Therapy on Increasing the Quality of Marital Relationship and Conflict Resolution in Incompatible Couples Referring to the Counseling Center. MEJDS 2025; 15 (0) :111-111
URL: http://jdisabilstud.org/article-1-3426-en.html
Investigating the Effectiveness of Emotion-Oriented Couple Therapy on Increasing the Quality of Marital Relationship and Conflict Resolution in Incompatible Couples Referring to the Counseling Center
Menoosh Karami1 , Jahngir Karami *2 , Maryam Akbari3
1- PhD Student in Counseling, Counseling Department, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran
2- Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran
3- Assistant Professor, Counseling Department, Sanandaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sanandaj, Iran
Abstract:   (1686 Views)

Abstract
Background & Objectives: The lack of effective communication and dialogue creates significant conflict between couples and exacerbates marital problems. Almost all couples experience conflict in their relationships, which is accompanied by hostility, tension, disobedience, and a decrease in the quality of marital life. Unresolved conflicts lead to negative emotions and behaviors; in addition, these conflicts negatively impact communication patterns, marital dialogue, and forgiveness skills by reducing feelings of connection with others. Emotion–focused couples therapy is a short–term couples therapy based on the premise that emotions themselves have an inherent adaptive capacity that, when activated, helps couples control unwanted emotional expression. Couples therapy has been prioritized due to the increasing prevalence of divorce cases in Iran, especially among young couples, and the increase in family conflicts. This study investigated the effectiveness of emotional couples therapy in improving the quality of marital relationships and resolving conflicts among incompatible couples attending counseling centers.
Methods: This quasi–experimental study employed a pretest–posttest design with a two–month follow–up and a control group. The research community comprised all couples who visited the Gulistan Counseling and Psychology Center in Kermanshah City, Iran, in 2023. Through targeted sampling, 30 married women and men who visited the Counseling and Psychology Center were selected, randomly assigned to two groups, and tested and certified. Considering the inclusion criteria for the study, including consent and awareness to participate in the study, scoring 101 or less on the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Spanier, 1976), having at least 3 years of cohabitation with a spouse, being between 25 and 50 years old, committing to attending all couples therapy sessions, and having at least literacy, 30 participants met the criteria for inclusion in the study. Research tools included the Rahim Organization Conflict Inventory–II (ROCI–II) (Rahim and Magens, 1995) and the Perceived Relationship Quality Components Inventory (Fletcher et al., 2000). An emotion–focused couples therapy group program was implemented in the experimental group for 10 sessions lasting 90 minutes. In the present study, ethical principles were observed, including obtaining written consent to participate in the research and respecting the principle of confidentiality; in this regard, the names and identifying information of the participants were removed to ensure confidentiality. Also, sufficient information was provided to all participants about the nature of the research and their freedom to withdraw from the research process. To analyze the research data, descriptive (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistical methods (repeated–measures analysis of variance and Bonferroni post hoc tests) were used. A significance level of 0.05 was considered for statistical tests. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software version 26.
Results: The effects of time (p<0.001), group (p<0.001), and the interaction effect of group × time (p<0.001) on the quality of the marital relationship and on constructive and unconstructive conflict resolution were significant. In all the mentioned variables, there was a significant difference between the pretest, posttest, and follow–up mean scores (p<0.001). However, there was no significant difference between the posttest and follow–up mean scores for the quality of the marital relationship and for constructive and unconstructive conflict resolution, indicating the persistence of the effect of emotion–focused couple therapy in the follow–up period (p=1.000).
Conclusions: Based on the research findings, emotion–focused couple therapy is effective in increasing the quality of the marital relationship and resolving conflict among incompatible couples. It is recommended that psychotherapists and family counselors use emotion–focused couple therapy as an effective intervention to deal with marital incompatibility in couples.

Keywords: Marital relationship quality, Conflict resolution, Emotion–oriented couple therapy, Incompatible couples
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Type of Study: Original Research Article | Subject: Counseling
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