Wives’ Domain‐Specific “Marriage Work” with Friends and Spouses: Links to Marital Quality*

Abstract

This study examined the friendship experiences of 52 wives and mothers, with particular attention given to wives' marriage work (discussions about concerns and problems in the marriage) in 10 domains with friends and spouses. A series of withinsubjects repeated measures analyses of variance (ANOVAs) indicated that in all but two domains, wives were equally likely to talk to their spouses and their close friends about marital concerns. A series of hierarchical regression analyses tested whether women's marriage work with their spouses moderated the link between marriage work with friends and reports of marital quality. Support for moderation was found for reports of conflict or negativity and satisfaction. Implications for family practitioners and programming are discussed.

Mexican Immigrant Wives’ Acculturative Stress and Spouses’ Marital Quality

“…This finding contrasts with prior work with primarily White working-and middle-class women showing that wives engaged in more marriage work with their close friends than husbands (Helms et al, 2003;Oliker, 1989). The current finding is notable in that it challenges earlier speculations that marriage work with friends may be normative and thus occur more frequently than marriage work with husbands in cultural groups that emphasize connections with kin and friends outside the marriage (Proulx et al, 2004) and offers further support for earlier works suggesting that reliance on husbands in this way may be particularly adaptive for Mexican-origin women living in emerging immigrant communities who may be geographically dislocated from close female kin and friends (Bender et al, 1999;Helms et al, 2011).…”

“…Identified in prior research is a relational process labeled "marriage work" in which wives discussed marital concerns with their close friends or husbands (Helms et al, 2003;Oliker, 1989;Proulx et al, 2004). The term marriage work was derived from Oliker's (1989) in-depth interviews with 17 working-and middle-class wives and three divorced women to describe women's active involvement in one anothers' marriages through regular disclosure about marital concerns.…”

“…This body of literature suggests that wives' active engagement with their husbands and close friends regarding concerns related to marriage may serve to buffer marriage against the affects of a variety of contextual stressors (Erickson, 1993;Helms et al, 2011;Proulx et al, 2004;Simons, Whitbeck, Melby, & Wu, 1994). Furthermore, recent work with Latino immigrant women living in new settlement states characterized by wives' more limited contact with their own female kin and close friends underscores the importance of wives' reliance on their husbands (more so than their kin or nonkin friends) as a response to the stressors associated with adapting to life in a new country (Bender, Castro, & O'Donnell, 1999;Hoban, 2005;Parrado & Flippen, 2005).…”

Links between mothers’ and fathers’ perceptions of infant temperament and coparenting

“…Quality of marital functioning was a composite of two measures that were assessed prenatally: the Conflict and Problem-Solving Scales (CPS; Kerig, 1996), and an adaptation of the Aspects of Married Life Questionnaire (Huston, McHale, & Crouter, 1986; Proulx, Helms, & Payne, 2004). Mothers and partners rated the frequency with which they and their partners engaged in 39 different strategies during marital conflicts over the past year on the conflict strategies subscale of the CPS using a scale from 0 (never) to 3 (often).…”

Imposing Order

“…Failure to engage in "marriage work" can relate to marital conflict and decreased marital satisfaction (Proulx, Helms, & Payne, 2004). Although many of these families felt that they could put their time as a couple on hold, decision making about using strategies to impose order.…”