Development of a Verbal Intelligence Training Package and Evaluation of Its Effectiveness on Marital Conflict Resolution and Marital Adjustment
Keywords:
Training package, Verbal intelligence, Marital conflicts, Marital adjustmentAbstract
Objective: The present study aimed to develop a verbal intelligence training package and evaluate its effectiveness in improving marital conflict resolution and marital adjustment.
Methods and Materials: This mixed-method exploratory sequential study was conducted in two phases. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews were carried out with 12 couples experiencing marital conflicts and 15 family psychology and couple therapy experts. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step thematic analysis, resulting in six main categories: psychological–communicational factors, communicational performance, cultural–economic contexts, intervening factors, coping strategies, and outcomes. These categories formed the basis for a ten-session intervention package, whose content validity was confirmed by 15 experts using CVR and CVI indices. In the quantitative phase, a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest control group design with a two-month follow-up was employed. The sample included 24 couples with marital conflicts from Tehran counseling centers, selected purposively and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Data were collected using the Sanaei Marital Conflicts Questionnaire (2008) and the Spanier Marital Adjustment Scale (1976).
Findings: The results showed that the verbal intelligence training package significantly reduced marital conflicts and increased marital adjustment in the experimental group compared to the control group, and these effects persisted at the two-month follow-up. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and repeated-measures ANOVA confirmed significant differences between pretest, posttest, and follow-up mean scores (p<0.001).
Conclusion: The developed verbal intelligence training package can serve as an effective intervention to improve verbal communication, enhance marital adjustment, and reduce marital conflicts, providing practical guidance for family counselors and couple therapists.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Leila Rahimian Sabet (Author); Aboutaleb Seadatee Shamir; Mohammad Azad Abdollhpour (Author)
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