It has become increasingly apparent that the topic of marital conflict has been
given special status within the published literature on issues of marriage (Bradbury,
Rogge, & Lawrence, 2001; Fincham, 2003). The question has been raised as to whether
or not there are other constructs that deserve comparable attention. The present study
argues for a closer look at an additional emerging construct, emotional intimacy, and its
role in couples relationships. Much of the literature on overt conflict and emotional
intimacy fails to make an adequate distinction between these two constructs. The
present study proposed to derive two factor scales from the Marital Satisfaction
Inventory-Revised, Disaffection and Disharmony. Basic psychometric properties of
these scales were examined using multiple data sets. Implications were examined for
understanding underlying components of relationship distress in both community and
clinic couples, and results provided support for the use of the revised factor scales in
both clinical and research applications
