Volume 15 - Articles-1404                   MEJDS (2025) 15: 62 | Back to browse issues page

XML Persian Abstract Print

Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:
Beikzadeh K, Emamipour S, Baghdasarians A. Compiling a Model of Extramarital Relationships Based on Early Maladaptive Schemas with the Mediation of Cognitive Flexibility in Men. MEJDS 2025; 15 (0) :62-62
URL: http://jdisabilstud.org/article-1-3267-en.html
Compiling a Model of Extramarital Relationships Based on Early Maladaptive Schemas with the Mediation of Cognitive Flexibility in Men
Khadijeh Beikzadeh1 , Souzan Emamipour *2 , Anita Baghdasarians3
1- PhD Student in General Psychology, Department of Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
2- Associate Professor of General Psychology, Department of Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
3- Assistant Professor of General Psychology, Central Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract:   (1253 Views)

Abstract
Background & Objectives: Extramarital relationships are among the main causes of family breakdown and divorce, and can cause severe physical and psychological consequences in couples. Based on theoretical and empirical foundations, extramarital relationships are a multidimensional phenomenon and related to numerous individual, social, and interpersonal factors. In this context, the early maladaptive schemas are self–harming emotional and cognitive patterns that can play an effective role in extramarital relationships. In the meantime, some psychological variables can affect the relationship between primary incompatible schemas and extramarital relationships. Cognitive flexibility is one of these variables, as it enables a person to deal appropriately and effectively with pressures, challenges, and other emotional and social issues, such as facing extramarital relationships. Studying the causes of marital relations and their influencing factors is very important both scientifically and socially, as it is effective in preventing and controlling this problem in the future. On this basis, the present study aims to formulate a model of extramarital relations based on early maladaptive schemas. The first one was done with the mediation of cognitive flexibility in men.
Methods: The method of the present research was descriptive–analytical using structural equation modeling. Also, the current research was quantitative in nature and cross–sectional in terms of execution time. The statistical population of this research comprised all men with extramarital relationships who referred to a counseling center (Hamkadeh) in the west of Tehran City, Iran, from March to September 2021. The sample of this research included 230 men with extramarital relationships between the ages of 28 and 45 years old who were selected through convenience sampling. The inclusion criteria for entering the research included an age range of 28 to 45 years, a marriage duration of 4 years or more, and an educational qualification of at least a diploma. The exclusion criteria included unwillingness to continue cooperation regarding the completion of questionnaires and incomplete and distorted completion of questionnaires. In this study, ethical considerations, including the confidentiality of information collected through the anonymity of the questionnaires and the voluntariness of participation in the research, were taken into account by obtaining consent from the participants.
Additionally, through the Hamkadeh Counseling Center, all participants were assured that their information would be protected and kept confidential and would only be used for research purposes. The Marital Infidelity Questionnaire (Yeniçeri & Kökdemir, 2006), the Early Maladaptive Schema Questionnaire (Young, 1998), and the Cognitive Flexibility Inventory (Dennis & Vander Wal, 2010) were used to collect data. Descriptive analysis of data was done using mean and standard deviation, and inferential analysis of data was done through the Pearson correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling using maximum likelihood using SPSS version 27 and AMOS version 24 software. The statistical significance level of all tests was considered 0.05.
Results: The direct effect of maladaptive schemas on extramarital relationships was positive and significant (β=0.151, p=0.042) but negative and significant on cognitive flexibility (β=–0.412, p<0.001). The direct effect of cognitive flexibility on extramarital relationships was negative and significant (p<0.001, β=–0.340). Also, the indirect impact of maladaptive schemas on extramarital relationships through the mediating variable of cognitive flexibility was significant (β=0.14, p=0.013). The goodness of fit indices indicated the fit of the assumed research model with the experimental data (χ2/df=1.33, GFI=0.950, AGFI=0.921, CFI=0.989, RMSEA=0.038).
Conclusion: According to the findings, early maladaptive schemas are related to extramarital relationships through cognitive flexibility. Therefore, it is possible to reduce extramarital relationships by reducing the early maladaptive schemas and strengthening cognitive flexibility in men.


Keywords: Extramarital relationships, Early maladaptive schemas, Cognitive flexibility
Full-Text [PDF 466 kb]   (41 Downloads)    
Type of Study: Original Research Article | Subject: Psychology
References
1. Hedayati Dana S, Saberi H. Predicting marital satisfaction according to love–making styles (intimacy, desire, commitment) and anxiety. Journal of Family Research. 2014;10(4):511–27. [Persian] [Article]
2. Beltrán–Morillas AM, Alonso–Ferres M, Garrido–Macías M, Villanueva–Moya L, Sánchez–Hernández MD, Expósito F. The relationship between the motivation to commit infidelity and negative affect and self–esteem: how cheating in romance might signal positive well–being in adolescents. Psychol Rep. 2022;125(1):517–44. [DOI]
3. Sarabi P, Imanizad A, Alahyari V, Parvizi F. Investigating the underlying causes and consequences of extramarital relationships (marital infidelity) from the perspective of married youth in Kermanshah: a study of grounded theory. Rooyesh–e–Ravanshenasi Journal. 2022;11(6):33–48. [Persian] [Article]
4. Jamali M, Shakeri T, Ahmadi F, Azadfallah P. Factors influencing men’s extramarital relations, a qualitative study of women’s experiences. Iranian Journal of Rehabilitation Research. 2020;6(3):84–93. [Persian] [Article]
5. Alexopoulos C, Gamble H. Prime time affairs: a quantitative analysis of infidelity in popular television programs. Sexuality & Culture: An Interdisciplinary Quarterly. 2022;26(4):1490–509. [DOI]
6. Ignat R. 704 infidelity, impulsivity, attachment and distorted cognitions. The Journal of Sexual Medicine. 2018;15(Supplement–3):S401. [DOI]
7. Seyed Mousavi M, Moharami J. Alexithymia, loneliness and fear of intimacy: predictors of attitudes toward infidelity in men. Contemporary Psychology, Biannual Journal of the Iranian Psychological Association. 2019;14(1):12–21. [Persian] [DOI]
8. Güler K. Early period maladaptive schemas, psycological symptoms and examining the tendency of deception. Eur Res J. 2022;8(2):232–41. [DOI]
9. Salimi H, Javdan M, Zarei E, Najarpourian S. The health of marital relationship in the light of factors affecting the stability and satisfaction of the relationship: a review study. J Educ Community Health. 2019;6(3):183–92. [Persian] [DOI]
10. Zanganeh Parsa F, Hobbi MB. Testing the mediating role of cognitive flexibility in the relationship between psychological capital and distress tolerance in couples suffering from marital infidelity. The Women and Families Cultural-Educational. 2021;15(53):105–23. [Persian] [Article]
11. Dennis JP, Vander Wal JS. The cognitive flexibility inventory: instrument development and estimates of reliability and validity. Cognitive Therapy and Research. 2010;34(3):241–53. [DOI]
12. Dajani DR, Uddin LQ. Demystifying cognitive flexibility: implications for clinical and developmental neuroscience. Trends Neurosci. 2015;38(9):571–8. [DOI]
13. Douw L, Wakeman DG, Tanaka N, Liu H, Stufflebeam SM. State–dependent variability of dynamic functional connectivity between frontoparietal and default networks relates to cognitive flexibility. Neuroscience. 2016;339:12–21. [DOI]
14. Zmigrod L, Rentfrow PJ, Zmigrod S, Robbins TW. Cognitive flexibility and religious disbelief. Psychol Res. 2019;83(8):1749–59. [DOI]
15. Sağar ME. Predictive role of cognitive flexibility and self–control on social media addiction in university students. International Education Studies. 2021;14(4):1–10. [DOI]
16. Vowels LM, Vowels MJ, Mark KP. Is infidelity predictable? Using explainable machine learning to identify the most important predictors of infidelity. J Sex Res. 2022;59(2):224–37. [DOI]
17. Isma MNP, Turnip SS. Personality traits and marital satisfaction in predicting couples’ attitudes toward infidelity. Journal of Relationships Research. 2019;10: e13. [DOI]
18. Mahdyzadeh F, Darekordi A. The relationship between early maladaptive schemas and attitude to meta –marriage relationships with mediating dimensions of mindfulness in order to present the model. Journal of Psychological Science. 2020;19(87):383–9. [Persian] [DOI]
19. Bakhtyari E, Hosseini S, Arefi M, Afsharnia K. The mediating role of marital intimacy in the relationship between attachment style and couples’ attitude towards infidelity. Journal of Counseling Research. 2021;20(77):122–40. [Persian] [DOI]
20. Westland JC. Lower bounds on sample size in structural equation modeling. Electronic Commerce Research and Applications. 2010;9(6):476–87. [DOI]
21. Yeniçeri Z, Kökdemir D. University students’ perceptions of, and explanations for, infidelity: The development of the infidelity questionnaire (INFQ). Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal. 2006;34(6):639–50.
22. Khatibi P, Meghrazi P. Predicting psychological helplessness based on initial maladaptive schemas and coping strategies in women affected by marital infidelity. Applied Family Therapy Journal (AFTJ). 2023;4(2):503–22. [Persian] [DOI]
23. Karimi S, Yousefi R, Soleymani M. Making marital infidelity questionnaire as valid one. Clinical Psychology and Personality. 2020;17(1):237–48. [Persian] [DOI]
24. Young JE. Young Schema Questionnaire-Short Form. 1st ed. New York: Cognitive Therapy Center; 1998.
25. Schmidt NB, Joiner TE, Young JE, Telch MJ. The schema questionnaire: investigation of psychometric properties and the hierarchical structure of a measure of maladaptive schemas. Cognitive Therapy and Research. 1995;19(3):295–321. [DOI]
26. Yousefi N, Etemadi O, Bahrami F, Ahmadi SA, Fatehi zadah MAS. comparing early maladaptive schemas among divorced and non-divorced couples as predictors of divorce. Iranian Journal of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology. 2010;16(1):21–33. [Persian] [Article]
27. Kohandani M, Abolmaali Alhosseini K. Factor structure and psychometric properties of Persian version of cognitive flexibility of Dennis, Vander Wal and Jillon. Psychological Models and Methods. 2017;8(29):53–70. [Persian] [Article]
28. Fazeli M, Ehteshamzadeh P, Hashemi SE. The effectiveness of cognitive behavior therapy on cognitive flexibility of depressed people. Thoughts and Behavior in Clinical Psychology. 2015;5(34):27. [Persian] [Article]
29. Xia Y, Yang Y. RMSEA, CFI, and TLI in structural equation modeling with ordered categorical data: the story they tell depends on the estimation methods. Behav Res Methods. 2019;51(1):409–28. [DOI]
30. Nasirijounaghani M, Asghari F, Poorsafar A. Correlation between the early maladaptive schemes, self differentiation and sexual function with extera marital relationship proneness in married female students of Gilan university. Journal of Psychology. 2021;99(3):329. [Persian] [Article]
31. Rokach A, Chan SH. Love and infidelity: causes and consequences. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023;20(5):3904. [DOI]
32. Karimi S, Doostdari F, Bahadoriyan Lotfabadi N, Yosefi R, Soleymani M, Kianimoghadam AS, et al. The role of early maladaptive schemas in predicting legitimacy, seduction, normalization, sexuality, social background, and sensation seeking in marital infidelity. Practice in Clinical Psychology. 2023;11(3):249–58. [Persian] [DOI]
Add your comments about this article : Your username or Email:
CAPTCHA
Send email to the article author

Rights and permissions
Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

© 2025 CC BY-NC 4.0 | Middle Eastern Journal of Disability Studies

Designed & Developed by : Yektaweb