Stephan R. Bollman

Characteristics of the Kansas Family Life Satisfaction Scale in a Regional Sample

In a regional sample of 620 families, the four items of the Kansas Family Life Satisfaction Scale demonstrated adequate internal consistency reliability and limited construct validity. As with other satisfaction scales, however, the scale did not manifest a normal distribution of responses. The scales social desirability characteristics were not assessed and remain unknown.

The “Marital Conventionalization” Argument; Implications for the Study of Religiosity and Marital Satisfaction

The “marital conventionalization” argument set forth by Edmonds, Withers, and Dibatista (1972) claims that empirical relationships observed between measures of religiosity and marital satisfaction are spurious artifacts of the common contamination of such measures with social desirability/acquiescence response bias, identified by Edmonds (1967) as “marital conventionalization” and measured through the Marital Conventionalization Scale (MCS). More recently, Glenn and Weaver (1978) have adopted the “marital conventionalization” argument to discount the importance of the substantial, positive associations they observed between a religious variable and a measure of marital happiness. Data from two Kansas samples of husbands and wives were analyzed to evaluate the validity of the “marital conventionalization” argument. Results indicate that religiosity is an important predictor of marital satisfaction, at least in some samples, even among subjects who do not respond in a “conventionalizing” way to an abbreviated version of the MCS. Therefore, the limitations of the “marital conventionalization” argument should be considered prior to discounting empirical relationships found between religiosity and marital satisfaction as mere artifacts of social desirability or acquiescence response biases, as measured by the MCS.

His and Her Marriage Revisited

Glenn (1975) and Bernard (1975) have debated the relative benefits of marriage for men and women. An analysis of data from three samples of midwestern married couples yielded partial support for both positions. While men and women were equally happy on the average, when there was an extremely wide difference in marital satisfaction, it was almost always the woman who was less satisfied—“her” marriage was quite different from “his”—much worse.

GENDER AND MARITAL SATISFACTION: DATA FROM THE NATIONAL SURVEY OF FAMILIES AND HOUSEHOLDS '

In 1972, Bernard argued that marriage was good for men and bad for women. Subsequent research noted that wives, on average, reported lower marital satisfaction than husbands. Furthermore, when differences within couples existed on marital satisfaction, the wife was usually the less satisfied spouse; however, most previous studies of the gender/marital satisfaction relationship had not been based on nationally representative samples. A nationally representative sample from the 1988 Survey of Families and Households was used to assess the relationship of gender with marital satisfaction. Within-couple analyses indicated that wives were less satisfied with their marriages than husbands and that, when substantial within-couple differences occurred with respect to marital satisfaction, the wife was usually the less satisfied spouse. Results provide at least small support for feminist assertions about the relatively adverse nature of marriage for women in the United States.

Identity development and self-esteem of young adolescents in foster care

For adolescents in foster care progress towards achieving the developmental tasks of adolescence may be more challenging because of the additional stress of being separated from their birth families. Examined in this study is the influence of identification with birth family on the ability of 116 youth in foster care, in a midwestern state, to develop a self-identity and positive self-esteem.

Approaches To The Statistical Analysis Of Family Data

Family scholars are now becoming more and more concerned about the extent to which data collected from only one family member can accurately describe what is happening in the family. Little systematic guidance, however, has been available to researchers on how to analyze data collected from more than one family member. This paper presents several alternatives for the statistical analysis of family data. In general, it appears that multivariate multiple regression, typo logical analysis, and repeated measures designs are among the more useful tech niques for studying family data.

Adolescent Perspectives on Family Violence

VioLit summary: OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study by Schumm et al. was to evaluate the three aspects (physical violence, verbal aggression, reasoning scales) of Strauss Conflict Tactics Scale. METHODOLOGY: This study combined a quasi-experimental cross-sectional design with a probability sample of randomly selected adolescents from a rural southeastern Kansas community and from the city of Wichita, Kansas. The rural group included 47 males and 36 females, average age 15.1 years. The urban group included 53 males and 45 females average age 15.8 years. Primary data collection for each group contained 3 principal components; the physical violence scale, verbal aggression scale and reasoning scale. This was analyzed through principal components analysis with varimax rotation using an SPSS routine. FINDINGS/DISCUSSION: Strauss Conflict Tactics Scales factor structures were confirmed, with strongest support for the physical violence scale. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright

Gender and Marital Satisfaction: A Replication Using a Seven-Point Item Response Version of the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale

In a subsample of married individuals, 97 married men and 154 married women, who had participated in a larger study of retention of church members, an effect size of 0.28 was found between gender and marital satisfaction as measured by the standard 21-point, three-item Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale. The results are consistent with previous reports of a gender effect associated with marital satisfaction, including an analysis of another subsample of the same larger study in which a 15-point version of the scale was used.

Dimensionality of an Abbreviated Version of the Relationship Inventory: An Urban Replication with Married Couples

An abbreviated version of the Relationship Inventory (Barrett-Lennard, 1962) was administered to a random sample of 98 urban married couples to replicate an earlier study involving a sample of 83 rural married couples. Principal components were analyzed to assess the dimensionality of items pertaining to empathy, congruence, and regard. In general, results of the previous study were confirmed. Although the abbreviated inventory may have limitations, it appears to be adequate enough to warrant use in future research in that the same dimensions were found across four different groups of respondents in the two studies.

FAMILY STRENGTHS AND THE KANSAS MARITAL SATISFACTION SCALE: A FACTOR ANALYTIC STUDY '

20 new items were developed to measure six concepts of family strengths and were administered, along with the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale, to over 266 married subjects as part of a larger survey of current and former members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). A common factor analysis suggested that most of the items were associated with their expected factors, while reliability analyses indicated that most of the scales had acceptable estimates of internal consistency. The marital satisfaction items clearly were associated with their own factor and not other factors, providing support for the unidimensional nature of the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale and for its construct validity.