Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
25th International Congress on Psychological Counseling and Guidance, Ankara, Türkiye, 16 - 19 Mayıs 2024, ss.307-308, (Özet Bildiri)
Introduction: Marriage, which has a multidimensional structure, has had an important place in
human life from past to present. However, due to the increase in divorce rates in recent years, many
researchers have conducted studies examining the dynamics affecting marriage and other positive
and negative factors thought to affect marital satisfaction. Psychological symptoms are considered
to be crucial in terms of affecting the healthy functioning of marriages. In a research endeavor
carried out in the USA, it was discovered that anxiety symptoms surged three times, and depressive
symptoms escalated fourfold during the second quarter of 2020, in contrast to the corresponding
period of the previous year. These increases simultaneously affect marriages and increase the risk
of divorce. It has been understood that another factor that affects marriage dynamics is being
involved in a dual-career marriage. The advantages of the dual-working married family structure,
such as economic relief, equal distribution of housework and childcare responsibilities, expansion
of the social circle, and support for personal development, have been mentioned. However, on the
contrary, studies have shown that couples face difficulties such as spreading work stress into the
family, conflicting demands, fulfilling their domestic obligations, decreasing the time spent with
each other, and decreasing marital satisfaction. It has been argued that the stress experienced at
work affects the other spouse through spillover and crossover processes, and when this situation is
not balanced, marital satisfaction is negatively affected. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate
the association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction in dual-career married
couples.
Purpose: This study aims to examine the relationship between psychological symptoms and marital
satisfaction in dual-career married couples living in Turkey.
Method: In the current study, the main data were collected from dual-career married couples living
in Turkey. The sample of the current study consisted of 120 dual-career married couples (n=240).
The sample was recruited via snowball sampling and purposive sampling. The inclusion criteria for
the current study were as follows: (a) being involved in a dual-career marriage, (b) being married
for at least six months, and (c) living in Turkey. The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS), the
Marital Satisfaction Scale, and a demographic form were used to collect data. An online
questionnaire was used to collect the data. The actor-partner interdependence model (APIM) was
used to analyze the association between psychological symptoms and marital satisfaction.
Findings: There were direct actor effects between psychological symptoms and marital
satisfaction. Specifically, wives’ psychological symptoms predicted their own marital satisfaction
(β = -0.31, p < 0.01). Moreover, husbands’ psychological symptoms predicted their own marital
satisfactions (β = -0.27, p < 0.01). No partner effects were found.
Conclusion: Based on the findings of the current study, it can be concluded that psychological
symptoms such as depression, anxiety, and stress tend to result in lower levels of marital satisfaction
for both wives and husbands. In this regard, couple counseling can support the healthy functioning
of marriage with communication, cooperation, effective listening, or other interpersonal skills
developed to increase their dual-career married couple clients' marital satisfaction, as well as with
reducing their clients' psychological symptoms through individual counseling interventions.
Keywords: Psychological symptoms, marital satisfaction, dual-career marriages