Yvan Lussier

Development and validation of a brief version of the Dyadic adjustment scale with a nonparametric item analysis model

The main purpose of the current research was to develop an abbreviated form of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) with nonparametric item response theory. The authors conducted 5 studies, with a total participation of 8,256 married or cohabiting individuals. Results showed that the item characteristic curves behaved in a monotonically increasing function for all items of the brief 4-item version of the DAS (DAS-4). The DAS-4 proved to be informative at all levels of couple satisfaction. Compared with the 32-item version of the DAS (DAS-32), it was as effective in predicting couple dissolution and was significantly less contaminated by socially desirable responding. In addition, structural equation modeling demonstrated that the underlying latent construct measured by the DAS-4 was very stable over a 2-year period. This brief version has the advantage of being less time consuming and constitutes a promising alternative to the original DAS-32 for clinicians and researchers.

Personality and Marital Adjustment: Utility of the Five-Factor Model of Personality

Using the five-factor model of personality, this study investigates the contribution of personality traits to marital adjustment. The sample is composed of 446 couples who completed the NEO Five-Factor Inventory, which measures the personality traits of neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, as well as the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Results of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that self-reported and partner-reported personality traits were significant predictors of self-reported marital adjustment for both men and women. Personality traits were found to contribute to the prediction of marital adjustment over and above the effect of neuroticism. Both interpersonal and intrapersonal factors can influence marital relationships. Prominent intrapersonal factors are personality traits-the emotional, relational, experiential, attitudinal, and motivational styles of an individual that are assumed to be stable over time (Costa & McCrae,1992). Many studies suggest that specific personality factors can predict marital adjustment. For example, personality factors were better predictors of marital instability measured 4 years later than demographic variables, such as the age, the educational level, or the history of previous divorces of the individual (Bentler & Newcomb, 1978). Relationships between personality factors and marital outcomes have been observed using cross-sectional designs (e.g., Hjemboe & Butcher, 1991; Long & Andrews, 1990; Miller, Lefcourt, Holmes, Ware, & Saleh, 1986; Russell & Wells, 1994; Snyder & Regts, 1990) and longitudinal designs (Bentler & Newcomb, 1978; Karney & Bradbury, 1995; Kelly & Conley, 1987; Kurdek, 1991; Shaver & Brennan, 1992). The criterion variable was marital adjustment scores or marital status (i.e., divorced vs. still married). An individuals level of neuroticism (the negative affectivity and emotional instability) has been the most consistent and powerful personality predictor of relationship outcomes. Self-reported neuroticism frequently was negatively associated with diverse measures of marital adjustment (Buss, 1991; Geist & Gilbert, 1996; Kurdek, 1997). For instance, the results of a broad longitudinal study conducted over 50 years on a sample of 300 couples revealed that the level of neuroticism of both spouses was a key determinant of their marital adjustment (Kelly & Conley, 1987). More specifically, the spouses who divorced and the spouses who were dissatisfied with their union scored higher on neuroticism that was measured before their marriage. Karney and Bradbury (1995) recently emphasized that, considering the huge predictive power of neuroticism, the influence of other personality traits in marital outcomes remains to be investigated, after controlling for the level of neuroticism. Significant relationships also were observed between self-reported marital adjustment and particular personality traits, such as psychotism, agreeableness, and internal locus of control. A high level of psychotism was negatively associated with self-reported marital adjustment, and the other two personality factors were positively associated (Russell & Wells, 1994; Smolen & Spiegel, 1987). Furthermore, personality factors such as perspective taking (the tendency to put oneself in another persons place), emotional expressiveness, and ambivalence in emotional expressiveness also were significant predictors of marital adjustment. The first two related positively to marital adjustment, and the last one related negatively (King, 1993; Long & Andrews, 1990). Finally, outcomes of the personality factor of extraversion offered mixed results. A high level of extraversion was positively related (Richmond, Craig, & Ruzicka, 1991), negatively related (Bentler & Newcomb, 1978; Geist & Gilbert, 1996), and unrelated (Russell & Wells, 1994) to marital adjustment scores. …

Child sexual abuse and subsequent relational and personal functioning: The role of parental support

This study examined the role of nonoffending parental support in the relationship between child sexual abuse (CSA) and later romantic attachment, psychiatric symptoms, and couple adjustment. Of 348 adults engaged in stable romantic relationship, 59 (17%) reported sexual abuse. In this subgroup, 14% (n=8) reported parental intervention after the abuse was disclosed (i.e., support), 15% (n=9) reported a lack of parental intervention after abuse disclosure (i.e., nonsupport), and 71% (n=42) reported that their nonabusive parent(s) was(were) unaware of their abuse. Results indicated that, compared to other groups, CSA survivors with nonsupportive parents reported higher levels of anxious attachment, psychological symptoms, and dyadic maladjustment. In contrast, CSA survivors with supportive parent(s) expressed psychological and couple adjustment equivalent to non-abused participants, and lower attachment avoidance, relative to all other groups. Path analysis revealed that insecure attachment completely mediated the relationship between perceived parental support after CSA and later psychosocial outcomes. An actor-partner interdependence model showed different patterns for men and women and highlighted the importance of considering relational dynamics in dyads of CSA survivors. Overall, the results suggest that perceived parental support serves as a protective factor among those exposed to CSA.

Relationship Quality and Stability in Couples When One Partner Suffers From Borderline Personality Disorder

The main goal of the present study was to examine and compare the psychosocial functioning of 35 couples including a woman diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) to that of a nonclinical control sample of 35 couples. The BPD status of women from the clinical group and the prevalence of personality disorder in their partner were ascertained through the SCID-II. Participants completed self-report measures of couple functioning. A majority of couples in which the woman suffered from BPD (68.7%) evidenced frequent episodes of breakups and reconciliations and, over an 18-month period, nearly 30% of these couples dissolved their relationship. Nearly half of the men involved in a romantic relationship with a woman suffering from BPD met criteria for one personality disorder or more. As compared with nonclinical couples, clinical couples showed lower marital satisfaction, higher attachment insecurity, more demand/withdraw communication problems, and higher levels of violence.

Early abuse experiences and subsequent gender differences in couple adjustment

The main purpose of the current study was to evaluate the relationship between early abusive experiences (sexual abuse, parental violence, and witnessing parental violence) and subsequent couple adjustment with a theoretical model that incorporates attachment and psychological distress as mediator variables. We specifically examined the variability in long-term psychosocial characteristics of child abuse survivors across women and men. A representative sample of French-Canadian couples composed of 632 men and women completed measures of child abuse, attachment, psychological distress, and dyadic adjustment. Structural equation analyses showed that, for both women and men, sexual abuse was related to dyadic adjustment through anxiety about abandonment and psychological distress. For men, experiencing physical or psychological violence was associated with dyadic adjustment through psychological distress. For women, there was an indirect relationship between witnessing physical violence and dyadic adjustment through abandonment anxiety. Differences between men and women in the long-term adjustment to childhood sexual abuse were small and not consistent with a gender-specific model of psychosocial repercussions.

Predictive validity of coping strategies on marital satisfaction : Cross-sectional and longitudinal evidence

The present study investigated the contribution of coping strategies, when facing marital difficulties, to marital satisfaction, using both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. For the cross-sectional design, both members of 506 couples individually completed the Ways of Coping Questionnaire and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Results revealed that self-reported coping strategies were significant-linear and curvilinear-predictors of both self- and partner-reported marital satisfaction. Results of the longitudinal analyses were based on 2 distinct samples: 95 couples who completed the same questionnaires 4 months later (short-term cohort) and 108 couples who again completed the same questionnaires 1.5 years later (long-term cohort). Significant, but weak, curvilinear relations between coping strategies and subsequent marital satisfaction were observed for women.

Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Romantic Adjustment: Comparison of Single- and Multiple-Indicator Measures

This study compared the usefulness of single- and multiple-indicator strategies in a model examining the role of child sexual abuse (CSA) to predict later marital satisfaction through attachment and psychological distress. The sample included 1,092 women and men from a nonclinical population in cohabiting or marital relationships. The single-item measure assessed the presence or absence of CSA. The multiple-indicator measure included items relating to level of force, relationship with perpetrator, number of abusive experiences, and nature of assault. Structural equation modeling indicated that, for research purposes, a dichotomized item provided as much information as a complex measure to predict the relationship between sexual abuse and marital adjustment through attachment representations and psychological distress. However, when analyses were conducted strictly within the CSA victims group, no correlation was found between abuse severity and psychosocial measures. The present results show that in a community sample, CSA may be an important risk factor that develops couple difficulties, regardless of the severity of the trauma.

Couples in Therapy: Actor-Partner Analyses of the Relationships Between Adult Romantic Attachment and Marital Satisfaction

This study was the first to investigate the relationship between adult romantic attachment and marital satisfaction in a clinical sample of 172 distressed couples seeking therapy. Fifty-six therapy-seeking nondistressed couples were also assessed for comparison. Analyses of variance showed that attachment avoidance was a distinctive characteristic of distressed couples. Actor-partner analyses revealed that attachment avoidance (for men and women) and attachment anxiety (for women only) were predictive of marital dissatisfaction for distressed couples. Gender-stereotype discordant partner effects were also found. Results suggest that attachment orientations (especially avoidance) are relevant predictors of marital dissatisfaction in distressed couples seeking therapy, and that couple therapists can gain important information by assessing partners’ attachment orientations.

Does Anger Towards the Partner Mediate and Moderate the Link Between Romantic Attachment and Intimate Violence

The goal of this study is to evaluate a theoretical model of the link between attachment andcouple violence. The hypotheses state that experience and expression of anger towards the partner would mediate and moderate the association between an insecure attachment and couple psychologicaland physical violence. A sample of 316 couples representative of the French-speaking population ofQuebec filled out the Experiences in Close Relationships questionnaire, a couple version of the State-Trait Anger Inventory, and the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales. The mediator model revealed that experience and expression of anger in couples (state anger, trait anger, and anger-out) explained the association between an insecure attachment and intimate violence. The moderator model showed that significant interactions between male anxiety over abandonment and anger indicated that anger in couples (trait anger and anger control) moderates the strength and the direction of the association between attachment and intimate physical violence. Different outcomes were obtained when gender and type of violence were considered.

Avoidant and compulsive sexual behaviors in male and female survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

The main objectives of this study were to test a theory-based mediation model in which the relation between childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and dyadic adjustment is mediated through adult sexual avoidance and sexual compulsivity and to examine the gender-invariance of this model. A sample of 686 adults currently involved in a close relationship completed online self-report computerized questionnaires. Prevalence of CSA was 20% in women and 19% in men. In line with our hypotheses, path analyses and structural equation analyses showed that, for both women and men, CSA was associated with more sexual avoidance and sexual compulsivity, which, in turn, predicted lower couple adjustment. Overall, these findings suggest that both avoidant and compulsive sexuality are relevant intervention targets with couples in which one or both partners are CSA survivors.