Disclosing Extra-Dyadic Involvement (EDI): Understanding Attitudes, Subjective Norms, and Perceived Behavioral Control

Extra-dyadic involvement (EDI) is a complex issue that affects many individuals, couples, and families. One important, relatively unexplored issue concerns the disclosure of EDI. Despite some scholarly discourse on whether disclosure should be facilitated in a therapeutic context (e.g., Butler et al. in J Marital Fam Ther 35:125–143, 2009; Butler et al. in Am J Fam Ther 36:265–283, 2008), empirical research has not studied the intrapersonal or interpersonal processes related to disclosure. In this study, we explored potential factors involved in the decision to disclose EDI by looking at the relationships among attitudes towards EDI (in terms of perceived justifications and costs), subjective norms (obligation to disclose), and perceived behavioral control (difficulty) associated with EDI disclosure. Our sample included 337 individuals enrolled in at least one university course at one of three geographically distinct universities. Findings indicate that more permissive attitudes towards EDI are not significantly associated to the perceived difficulty in disclosing EDI or the obligation associated with disclosing EDI involving sexual intercourse. However, more permissive attitudes are related to lower felt obligation to disclose EDI that does not involve direct sexual intercourse. Conversely, more restrictive attitudes towards EDI (perceived severity, degree of perceived upset, and how detrimental it is perceived to be to the relationship) predicted greater difficulty but also greater obligation in disclosing all forms of EDI. Specific implications of these findings, including potential implications for therapy, are discussed. Overall, this study provides preliminary information regarding potentially useful factors to consider in understanding the EDI disclosure process that may also be useful in developing intervention points in therapy

Attachment-Related Dynamics During a Positively Themed Couple Interaction: Implications of Anxiety and Avoidance.

Attachment style and adult intimate relationships have often been studied in the context of distress, such as couple conflict. Attachment anxiety represents an intense need for closeness and reassurance based on fears of abandonment, while attachment avoidance is typified by discomfort with emotional closeness and intimacy. Understanding these attachment-related processes in couples is important, although little research has looked at these dynamics in the context of positively themed interactions, where relational distress is much lower. In this study, we examined the interactions of 63 couples to understand the relationship between attachment style (anxiety and avoidance) and feelings toward partner, psychophysiological arousal, and linguistic process (positive, negative, and “we” language). The interaction was a discussion that commonly occurs in some form in couple therapy: how the couple met. Results revealed both men and women higher in attachment anxiety felt more positively toward their partner during the interaction. However, women with a male partner higher in attachment anxiety had higher levels of psychophysiological distress during the interaction. We also discovered a systemic relationship between anxiety and avoidance, with individuals higher in anxiety using more negative and less “we” language during the interaction, but only if their partners were higher in avoidance. Other findings involving age, gender, education status, income, individual distress, and relationship status were also found in the context of these positively themed interactions. We discuss implications of the findings for clinicians as well as future research needed to clarify and build upon our current findings

Couple Emotional Experience: Effects of Attachment Anxiety in Low and High Structure Couple Interactions

This study used data from 63 heterosexual couples to investigate the effects of attachment anxiety and how they relate to emotional experience (i.e. psychophysiological distress and feelings towards a partner) in the context of two therapy-like conditions (low and high structure). We examined both the effect of an individual\u27s anxiety on his/her own emotional experience (actor effects) and on the partner\u27s experience (partner effects). During both interactional conditions, female partners of men higher in attachment anxiety experienced greater psychophysiological distress. In addition, men and women higher in attachment anxiety were not significantly different from others in terms of their feelings towards their partner during the low structure condition. However, their feelings were significantly more positive than others during the high structure condition, providing some evidence that attachment-based interventions can be especially useful for clients higher in attachment anxiety

Risk Estimates for Starting Tobacco, Alcohol, and Other Drug Use in the United States: Male–Female Differences and the Possibility That ‘Limiting Time With Friends’ is Protective

Background A specific facet of parental monitoring is known as ‘limiting time with friends’ (LTF). Here, we aim to learn whether LTF-associated differences in adolescent risk of starting to use tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs now might be as large as observed male–female risk differences. Methods Data are from the US National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, with annual large scale nationally representative samples of community-dwelling civilian age 12 years and older, conducted 2002–2009. Focus is on 12–17-year-old participants, assessed via computerized self-interviews. Risk differences are estimated for all 12–17 year olds, males and females separately, and in relation to the LTF facet of parenting. Results Contingency table analyses disclose a female excess risk of initiating use of tobacco, alcohol, cocaine, opioids, and EMIRD, with male–female risk differences ranging from 0.1% (cocaine) to 1.6% (alcohol). LTF-associated risk differences were of similar magnitude for young people whose parents ‘always’ limit time with friends versus those with parents who are more relaxed about the LTF facet of parenting [e.g., RD = 0.4% (cocaine); 1.5% (alcohol)]. Conclusions Not just for tobacco, but also for other drugs, there now is female excess risk of extra-medical drug use. Drug-by-drug, observed LTF-associated risk differences are about the same size as the female excess risk. This evidence provides a rationale to sustain focus on the LTF facet of parenting if the goal is to enhance prevention of precocious drug involvement and to delay its onset until later in the adolescent or adult years

Psychophysiological Arousal and Perceived Support During Couple Support Interactions: The Role of Attachment Anxiety and Avoidance

Couple support processes—typically occurring in the context of non-relationship distressing issues—are crucial to our understanding of relationships (Pasch, Bradbury, & Sullivan, 1997). These couple support processes influence important relationship outcomes, including relationship satisfaction and longevity (i.e., Collins & Feeney, 2010). In this study, we examined 51 couples’ support perceptions and physiological arousal during individually distressing support conversations. Using dyadic data analysis, results reveal important findings in terms of avoidant attachment and couple support perceptions. Additionally, significant results were found between attachment anxiety and psychophysiological arousal. Implications of the current findings for couple relationships and therapy are discussed

An Attachment Primer for Couple Therapists: Research and Clinical Implications

According to attachment theory, humans are relational beings and even a child\u27s earliest experiences with caregivers have a profound effect on emotional development and an overall approach to relationships. With increasing regularity, couple therapy has utilized attachment language as a conceptual tool, but more work is needed to understand the full clinical implications of attachment theory. These include understanding the intergenerational nature of attachment and adapting the delivery, timing, and pace of interventions to client attachment strategies. In this article, we summarize the origins of attachment theory, its measurement, the role of attachment in couple relationships, attachment stability and change, and ways that attachment informs therapy process and intervention. We hope that this article will provide an impetus for couple therapists to expand their conceptualization and use of attachment in their clinical work and for couple researchers to conduct more clinically relevant, attachment-oriented process research

Monitoring by Parents and Hypothesized Male-Female Differences in Evidence From a Nationally Representative Cohort Re-Sampled From Age 12 to 17 Years: An Exploratory Study Using a “Mutoscope” Approach

The link between adept parental monitoring (PM) and later positive behavioral and health outcomes already has motivated intervention trials, but questions remain about which specific facets and mechanisms of PM make a difference. Our current research questions concern fundamental male-female differences in PM facets as manifest in a US cohort, re-sampled each year at age 12 through 17 years during an interval from 2004 to 2009. We hypothesized emergence, by mid-adolescence, of a specific male-female difference in a “limit time with friends” (LTF) facet of adept PM, with overall PM levels held constant. The data, arranged using a “mutoscope” approach, are from six successive nationally representative independent cross-sectional sample surveys of the cohort, with each adolescent measured only once, via a multi-item PM module nested within the larger survey. Estimates and tests of male-female differences are from a “multiple indicators, multiple causes” latent structure model appropriate for complex survey data. In evidence consistent with the advance hypothesis and with PM level held constant via the model, the LTF facet generally was more relaxed for boys as compared to girls, in a difference that emerged by mid-adolescence, possibly due to greater LTF constraints for girls at mid-adolescence. This research adds to the knowledge base about male-female similarities and differences in facets of PM. As a specific PM facet, LTF might function as a mechanism suitable for deliberate intervention and as a possible specific target in “micro-trials” of new prevention research. We acknowledge limitations such as omitted variables, including social media effects, not measured in this investigation’s national surveys, but of potential importance in future research on peer influence as might have more distal parenting determinants

Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy (MHAA) for Youth: An Evaluation of a College-Based Mental Health Literacy Curriculum

Purpose College students’ mental health issues are a growing concern on campuses across the United States. With traditional face-to-face therapy services often being overburdened, university systems have invested resources into prevention based, health education approaches to decreasing students’ mental health issues. Despite investment, there is not, to our knowledge, an evidence-based curriculum taught as part of a degree seeking program that addresses increasing students’ mental health literacy (MHL). Accordingly, the Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy (MHAA) curriculum was created and evaluated in a college student population. Methods A total of 161 college students (n= 89 control; n= 71 treatment) participated in a quasi-experimental comparison X treatment X modality design. MHL (The Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy Assessment Tool and other related MHL measures) was assessed at two time points (beginning/end of semester). Generalized linear mixed effect models were used to analyze outcomes. Results Results of the pilot study indicated that students taking the MHAA curriculum, both in-person and online modalities, significantly increased key components of MHL (knowledge and self-efficacy) compared to the control group. MHL behaviors did not change in either group. There were no significant modality differences. Conclusion We conclude that the MHAA curriculum is useful in increasing students’ mental health literacy with no significant differences between online and in-person modalities. Future curriculum iterations may benefit from more strategically targeting MHL behaviors to further enhance effects of the course on prevention of mental health issues

Expressive Writing and Marital Satisfaction: A Writing Sample Analysis

Objective To examine the relationship between marital satisfaction and two linguistic elements in the context of writing: use of personal pronouns and affective language. Background Expressive writing (EW) is an effective way of identifying and processing thoughts and emotions. It also promotes individual, physical, and psychological health. However, much less literature has examined the relationship between EW and relationship health. Method We used the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC2007) to examine the writing of 78 married, heterosexual couples who were instructed to write freely on a topic they felt strongly about in their relationship. Multilevel modeling within SPSS was used to examine our research questions. Results Findings suggest a relationship between marital satisfaction and use of (a) first-person plural pronouns (we, us, our, ours), (b) positive affective language, and (c) linguistic indicators of anger when writing about one\u27s relationship. Conclusion The results provide further impetus for examining relationship processes within an EW framework and, in particular, for examining the merits of EW as a potential intervention for couples. Implications Findings suggest that expressive writing may be a potentially important indicator of mutuality (we-ness), the ability to up-regulate positive emotion, and negative affective processes (i.e., anger)