Doctoral Dissertations

Kris Koehne

Date of Award

5-2000

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

Human Ecology

Major Professor

Julia A. Malia

Committee Members

Priscilla Blanton, Michael Lane Morris, Schuyler W. Huck

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of three process variables (relational commitment, spousal intimacy, and religiosity) and seven select sociodemographic variables (age, length of marriage, educational attainment, personal income, frequency of church attendance, presence of children, and number of children) on marital satisfaction. Data were collected in 1993 and 1994 as part of a larger research project studying work and the family. The criteria for participation in the study were that participants had to be currently married and employed spouses were invited to participate also. The sample of the present study included 233 participants (119 men and 114 women, including 94 couples who both filled out the questionnaire) recruited from two suburban churches, a university medical center, a clothing manufacturing plant, and the regional office of a major financial institution in Knoxville, Tennessee, and its surrounding areas. The average sample member was 46 years old and had been married for 21 years. Since it is likely that many marriage-related variables operate differently for men and women, I decided it was necessary to conduct separate analyses for men and women in my study. Results of stepwise regression analyses indicated that spousal intimacy was a significant predictor of marital satisfaction for both genders in this sample. However, only for women was relational commitment a significant predictor of marital satisfaction. Religiosity did not act as a significant predictor of marital satisfaction for either gender in this sample. Likewise, none of the sociodemographic variables was found to be a significant predictor of marital satisfaction for men or women.

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