Effects of relationship education on couple communication and satisfaction: A randomized controlled trial with low-income couples.

Williamson, Hannah C.; Altman, Noemi; Hsueh, JoAnn; Bradbury, Thomas N.

doi:10.1037/ccp0000056

Cited by 94 publications

(108 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…A number of scholars over the past decade have explored whether CRE can be effective for more disadvantaged and distressed couples. The early evidence here is mixed, with some rigorous studies finding no effects (Wood, Moore, Clarkwest, & Killewald, ), others finding small positive effects (Amato, ; P. A. Cowan, Cowan, Pruett, Pruett, & Wong, ; Williamson, Altman, Hsueh, & Bradbury, ), and still others finding larger positive effects (Cox & Shirer, ; Stanley et al, ). See Hawkins and Erickson () for a meta‐analytic summary of this early research.…”

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confidence: 82%

“…However, FE couples were 20% more likely to be continuously together at the 3‐year follow‐up assessment compared with control‐group couples. In the Supporting Healthy Marriage study (Williamson et al, ), low‐income married couples in the Oklahoma City treatment group showed a pattern of small but statistically positive gains compared with control couples at the short‐term and the 30‐month assessments. The present study of FE draws from ongoing evaluation efforts, but those efforts no longer include a control group.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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How Does Couple and Relationship Education Affect Relationship Hope? An Intervention‐Process Study with Lower Income Couples

2017

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Objective To explore whether changes in positive interaction skills as a result of participation in couple and relationship education (CRE) are associated with changes in relationship hope. Background Recent CRE work has focused more on its effectiveness for disadvantaged couples, with the early evidence mixed. Increasing the effectiveness of CRE for disadvantaged couples will require more evidence of how it works, not just whether it works. Method In this study, 182 lower income couples participated in a 30‐hour psychoeducational intervention, Family Expectations (FE), in Oklahoma City. Participants completed measures of positive interaction skills and relationship hope, a seldom‐studied construct in CRE research, before and shortly after the program. Results At pretest, there was significant variation in relationship hope among FE participants. Latent growth curve models revealed changes in positive interaction skills were associated with higher levels of partners' relationship hope at the end of the program, although the effect of men's skills changes on their partners' hope was 3 to 4 times stronger than for women's skills changes on their partners' hope. Additional latent growth curve models found that nearly 70% of participants reported positive changes in skills and that participants entering the program with the lowest levels of hope experienced the greatest changes in positive interaction skills. Conclusion We conclude that relationship hope is a legitimate target outcome in CRE and is influenced by improvement in positive interaction skills, consistent with social learning theory. Also, those entering CRE with low levels of hope improve interaction skills most, and men's growth produces larger gains for the couple relationship than women's growth. Implications Distressed individuals and couples should be particularly encouraged to attend CRE programs, and program developers should make sure that their curricula and pedagogic processes are well aligned with men's interests and learning styles.

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confidence: 82%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Does Couple and Relationship Education Affect Relationship Hope? An Intervention‐Process Study with Lower Income Couples

2017

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“…For RE programs, a meta-analysis of low-income couples found participants with longer relationship length improved marginally more than couples with shorter relationship length. Additionally, an investigation into couples in the Supporting Healthy Marriage Project found that pre-treatment sociodemographic risk, operationally defined as less education, unemployment, or receiving public assistance among other indicators, did not predict gains in relationship satisfaction at 30 months (Williamson, Altman, Hsueh, & Bradbury, 2016). A second study found that risk did predict satisfaction over follow-up such that high risk couples declined at a slower rate than low risk couples (Williamson et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maintenance of Gains in Relationship and Individual Functioning Following the Online OurRelationship Program

et al. 2019

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In the United States, more than 40% of marriages end in divorce and more than one third of intact marriages are distressed. Unfortunately, only a minority of couples seek couple therapy to improve their relationships. Online interventions, with their increased reach and reduced costs, offer the potential to improve relationships nationwide. The online OurRelationship program has been shown in previous nationwide studies to improve relationship and individual functioning. The present study examined whether initial gains in the OurRelationship program were maintained in the following year and whether the extent of maintenance varied across important demographic and individual factors. In this study, 151 distressed heterosexual couples (302 individuals) who were randomized to the OurRelationship program were assessed 3 and 12 months following the intervention. Initial gains in relationship satisfaction, relationship confidence, and negative relationship quality were maintained through 12 months; positive relationship quality significantly improved over follow-up. Furthermore, couples maintained their initial gains in depressive symptoms, perceived health, work functioning, and quality of life; anxious symptoms continued to significantly decrease over follow-up. Finally, there was no evidence that historically underserved groups – racial/ethnic minorities, lower income couples, or rural couples – experienced greater deterioration. In fact, Hispanic couples reported continued improvement in relationship confidence and negative relationship quality in the 12 months following the program. The ability of the OurRelationship program – an eight-hour, primarily self-help program – to create long-lasting improvements in distressed relationships indicates it may have the potential to improve the lives of distressed couples on a broad scale.

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“…Men and women reported lower psychological abuse at 12 months, and women continued to report lower psychological abuse at 30 months (Hsueh et al, ; Lundquist et al, ). In a 12‐month follow‐up observational study, SHM couples were observed to have better communication skills, and women were observed to have lower anger and hostility than women in the control group (Hsueh et al, ; Williamson, Altman, Hsueh, & Bradbury, ). Notably, there were no statistically significant impacts of SHM on relationship dissolution.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moods, Stressors, and Severity of Marital Conflict: A Daily Diary Study of Low‐Income Families

et al. 2017

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Objective To examine links between negative moods, stressors, and daily marital conflict, and to test whether participation in a family‐strengthening program moderates those associations. Background Some family‐strengthening interventions have shown positive effects on low‐income married couples' relationships. Yet little is known about how these programs influence low‐income families' daily functioning. Method Families randomly assigned to the program participated in 10 weeks of relationship education. Control group families received no services. Thirty months later, participants reported on the severity of marital conflicts over a 15‐day period, as well as their moods and stressors. Results Dyadic models demonstrated that although moods like anger, anxiety, stress, and sadness were associated with more severe marital disagreements, associations were less strong for wives assigned to the program than to the control group. Although stress related to money was associated with more severe disagreements for husbands, associations were weaker for husbands assigned to the program than for those to the control group. Conclusion Family‐strengthening interventions may be able to reduce the tendency for negative moods and stressors to manifest in more severe marital conflict. Implications Programs may benefit from explicitly addressing the moods and stressors that individual husbands and wives report experiencing in their daily lives.

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Effects of relationship education on couple communication and satisfaction: A randomized controlled trial with low-income couples.

Cited by 94 publications

References 32 publications

How Does Couple and Relationship Education Affect Relationship Hope? An Intervention‐Process Study with Lower Income Couples

How Does Couple and Relationship Education Affect Relationship Hope? An Intervention‐Process Study with Lower Income Couples

Maintenance of Gains in Relationship and Individual Functioning Following the Online OurRelationship Program

Moods, Stressors, and Severity of Marital Conflict: A Daily Diary Study of Low‐Income Families

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