Hostname: page-component-7b7567c8c-2n9c9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-11-15T16:31:58.849Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Prediction and Responsiveness in Behavioural Marital Therapy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 June 2009

I. Bennun
I. Bennun
Affiliation:
District Department of Clinical Psychology, Exeter Health Authority
Get accessRights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

There is empirical evidence demonstrating the effectiveness of behavioural marital therapy. However the issues of predicting outcome and the responsiveness of particular marital problems to behavioural treatments, while crucial, have been largely ignored. Forty-five couples requesting therapy were consecutively assigned to either conjoint treatment, couples group treatment or treatment of one partner alone to ascertain whether a screening profile could be developed that would predict treatment outcome. In addition, the presenting target problems were analysed to investigate their responsiveness to treatment. The effects of the treatment were evaluated using measures of marital satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, presenting marital target problems and by an independent assessor. Using demographic and treatment variables as regressors, the analyses revealed that the coefficients were not on the whole statistically significant in predicting outcome. The trend analysis of target problems showed that conjoint treatment produced a more rapid rate of change compared to the other treatments. In addition, particular marital problems failed to respond to the treatment suggesting that the behavioural approach may require modification in the treatment of these problems.

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , July 1985, pp. 186 - 201
Copyright
Copyright © British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies 1985

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Arrindel, W., Boelens, W. and Lambert, H. (1983). On the psychometric properties of the Maudsley Marital Questionnaire (MMQ). Personality and Individual Differences 4, 293–306.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Baucom, D. (1982). A comparison of behavioural contracting and problem solving/communication training in behavioural marital therapy. Behaviour Therapy 13, 162–174.Google Scholar
Bennun, I. (1983). Behavioural marital therapy: A comparative evaluation of conjoint, group and individual treatment. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of London.Google Scholar
Bennun, I. (1984). Marital therapy with one spouse. In Marital Interaction: Analysis and Modification, Hahlweg, K. and Jacobson, N. (Eds), New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Bentler, P. and Newcomb, M. (1978). Longitudinal study of marital success and failure. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 46, 1053–1070.Google Scholar
Crowe, M. (1978). Conjoint marital therapy: A controlled outcome study. Psychological Medicine 8, 623–636.Google Scholar
Dominion, J. (1980). Marital Pathology. London: Darton, Longman & Todd.Google Scholar
Draper, N. and Smith, N. (1966). Applied Regression Analysis. New York: John Wiley.Google Scholar
Emmelkamp, P., van der Helm, M.MacGillavry, D. and van Zanten, B. (1984). Marital therapy with clinically distressed couples. In Marital Interaction: Analysis and Modification. Hahlweg, K. and Jacobson, N. (Eds), New York: Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Freeman, S., Leavens, E. and McCulloch, D. (1969). Factors associated with success and failure in marital counselling. Social Work 18, 125–128.Google Scholar
Golombok, S. and Rust, J. (1985). The Golombok rust inventory of sexual satisfaction, The British Journal of Clinical Psychology 24, 63–64Google Scholar
Grunebaum, N. (1981). Selection of couples for group therapy. In Questions and Answers in the Practice of Family Therapy. Gurman, A. (Ed), New York: Brunner Mazel.Google Scholar
Grunebaum, H., Christ, J. and Nieberg, N. (1969). Diagnosis and treatment planning for couples. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy 19, 185–202.Google Scholar
Gurman, A. and Kniskern, D. (1978). Research on marital and family therapy: Progress, perspective and prospect. In Handbook of Psychotherapy and Behaviour Change. Garfield, S. and Bergin, A. (Eds), New York: John Wiley.Google Scholar
Gurman, A. and Knudson, R. (1978). Behavioural marriage therapy: 1. A psychodynamic—systems analysis critique. Family Process 17, 121–138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gurman, A., Knudson, R. and Kniskern, D. (1978). Behavioural marriage therapy: IV. Take two aspirins and call us in the morning. Family Process 17, 165–180.Google Scholar
Hahlweg, K., Revensdorf, D. and Schindler, L. (1982). Treatment of marital distress: Comparing formats and modalities. Advances in Behaviour Research and Therapy 4, 57–74.Google Scholar
Hollender, M. (1974). Selection of therapy for marital problems. In Current Psychiatric Therapies, vol. 2, Masserman, J. (Ed), New York: Grune & Stratton.Google Scholar
Jacobson, N. (1979a). Increasing positive behaviour in severely distressed marital relationships: The efficacy of problem-solving training. Behaviour Therapy 10, 311–326.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jacobson, N. (1979b). Behavioural treatment for marital discord: A critical appraisal. In Progress in Behaviour Modification, vol. 8, Hersen, M., Eisler, R. and Miller, P. (Eds), New York: Academic Press.Google Scholar
Jacobson, N. (1984). A component analysis of behavioural marital therapy: The relative effectiveness of behaviour exchange and communication problem-solving training. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 52, 295–305.Google Scholar
Jacobson, N. and Margolin, G. (1979). Marital Therapy: Strategies Based on Social Learning and Behaviour Exchange Principles. New York: Brunner Mazel.Google Scholar
Kimmel, D. and van der Veen, F. (1974). Factors of marital adjustment in Locke's Marital Adjustment Test. Journal of Marriage and the Family 36, 57–63.Google Scholar
Landis, J. (1946). Length of time required to achieve adjustment in marriage. American Sociological Review 11, 665–669.Google Scholar
Liberman, R., Wheeler, E., de Visser, L., Kuehnel, J. and Kuehnel, T. (1980). Handbook of Marital Therapy: A Positive Approach to Helping Troubled Relationships. New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar
Margolin, G. (1983). Behavioural marital therapy: Is there a place for passion, play and other non-negotiable dimensions. The Behaviour Therapist 6, 65–68.Google Scholar
Marriage Matters (1979). A consultative document by the working party on marriage guidance, HMSO.Google Scholar
Mendonca, J., Lumley, P. and Hunt, A. (1982). Brief marital therapy outcome: Personality correlates. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 27, 291–295.Google Scholar
O'Leary, K. and Turkewitz, H. (1981). A comparative outcome study of behavioural marriage therapy and communication therapy. American Journal of Marital and Family Therapy 7, 159–169.Google Scholar
Perelman, J. (1960). Problems encountered in group psychotherapy of married couples. International Journal of Group Psychotherapy 10, 136–142.Google Scholar
Rice, D. (1978). The male spouse in marital and family therapy. The Counselling Psychologist 7, 64–67.Google Scholar
Shapiro, M. (1975). The assessment of self reported dysfunctions Parts 1 and 2. Unpublished manuscripts, Institute of Psychiatry, University of London.Google Scholar
Skynner, A. (1980). Recent developments in marital therapy. Journal of Family Therapy 2, 271–296.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spitz, H. (1979). Group approaches to treating marital problems. Psychiatric Annals 9, 318–330.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stuart, R. (1972). Marital Pre-Counselling Inventory. Champaign, Illinois: Research Press.Google Scholar
Thornes, B. and Collard, J. (1979). Who Divorces? London: Routledge & Keegan Paul.Google Scholar
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.