علیرضا آقایوسفی

Objective: The present study aimed to predict attitudes toward marital infidelity in couples based on attachment styles and personality traits with the mediation of coping strategies (gender comparison). Methods: The research method was correlational and used structural equation modeling. The statistical population included all married women and men aged 25 to 45 in Tehran. A sample of 420 individuals, comprising 210 women and 210 men, was selected through convenience sampling. Research data were collected using the Whately Marital Infidelity Attitude Questionnaire (2006), the Collins and Read Attachment Styles Questionnaire (1994), the Cattell 16 Personality Factor Test (1973), and the Lazarus-Folkman Coping Strategies Questionnaire (1988). Relationships between variables were assessed using Pearson's correlation test, and the research model was evaluated using the Partial Least Squares (PLS) structural equation modeling technique. The mediation role was also assessed using the bootstrapping method in Smart PLS software. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 27 and Smart PLS version 3. Findings: The research findings indicated that in the female sample, risk-taking as a personality trait could predict marital infidelity (p < .05). In the male sample, the conscientiousness personality trait directly predicted marital infidelity, while insecure attachment predicted marital infidelity both directly and indirectly through the avoidant-escape coping style (p < .05). Conclusion: The results showed that insecure attachment influences the tendency toward marital infidelity in the male group. Additionally, the conscientiousness factor influences the tendency toward marital infidelity in the male group, and the avoidance and escape strategies influence the tendency toward marital infidelity in the male group. The results also demonstrated that secure attachment negatively impacts the problem-solving coping strategy in the female group. Secure attachment negatively impacts the avoidant-escape strategy in the female group but positively impacts it in the male group. Insecure attachment positively impacts the avoidant-escape strategy in both the female and male groups. The conscientiousness factor positively impacts the problem-solving coping strategy in the female group. Moreover, sociability positively impacts the avoidant-escape strategy in the male group, while emotional stability negatively impacts the avoidant-escape strategy in the overall and male groups. Risk-taking negatively impacts the avoidant-escape strategy in the overall and male groups. These results showed no relationship between insecure attachment and the tendency toward marital infidelity in women.

Objective: This research aimed to compare the effectiveness of therapist-assisted couple therapy and emotion-focused couple therapy on psychological well-being, negotiation enhancement, and aggression reduction in women victims of spousal violence. Methods: The study was applied, field-based, and quasi-experimental, employing a pre-test, post-test design with a control group. The sample consisted of couples attending counseling and psychotherapy centers in Qom during the second half of 2021. Out of these, 45 couples were randomly assigned after entry criteria control into three groups: emotion-focused treatment group (15 couples), therapist-assisted treatment group (15 couples), and a control group (15 couples). The research tools included the Strauss et al. (1979) Conflict Tactics Scales and the Ryff (1989) Psychological Well-Being Scales, which were administered to the female victims in three phases: pre-test, post-test, and follow-up. The emotion-focused group received Johnson’s (2003) training package over nine sessions, and the therapist-assisted group received Aghayousefi et al.’s (2020) training package over eight sessions. The control group received no intervention. Data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA and SPSS software version 26. Findings: Results showed that both emotion-focused and therapist-assisted couple therapies significantly reduced aggression (F = 90.30, p < .001), increased negotiation (F = 64.47, p < .001), and enhanced psychological well-being (F = 103.81, p < .001) in the female victims of spousal violence, with these effects maintained at follow-up. However, the emotion-focused therapy package was more successful in improving psychological well-being, negotiation, and reducing aggression than the therapist-assisted therapy package. Conclusion: The findings suggest that both emotion-focused and therapist-assisted couple therapies are effective interventions for resolving conflicts and improving psychological well-being.