Comparing the Effectiveness of Imago Relationship Therapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Stages of Change Motivation and Maladaptive Communication Patterns in Couples with Marital Conflict
Keywords:
Imago Relationship Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Stages of Change, Maladaptive Communication Patterns, Marital ConflictAbstract
Objective: The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of Imago Relationship Therapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on stages of change motivation and maladaptive communication patterns among couples experiencing marital conflict.
Methods and Materials: This study employed a quasi-experimental pretest–posttest design with a control group. The statistical population consisted of couples referring to counseling centers in Tehran in 2023 due to marital conflict. A total of 45 couples were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned into three groups: Imago Relationship Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, and a control group, with 15 couples in each group. The research instruments included the University of Rhode Island Change Assessment (URICA) and the Communication Patterns Questionnaire (CPQ). Therapeutic interventions were implemented in eight weekly 90-minute sessions. Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) in SPSS-26 software.
Findings: The results of multivariate analysis of covariance indicated a significant difference among the study groups regarding the combined dependent variables (p < .001). Univariate analyses further demonstrated that both Imago Relationship Therapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy significantly increased stages of change motivation and significantly reduced maladaptive communication patterns compared to the control group (p < .001). Bonferroni post hoc comparisons also revealed that Imago Relationship Therapy was significantly more effective than Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in improving stages of change motivation and reducing maladaptive communication patterns.
Conclusion: The findings demonstrated that both Imago Relationship Therapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy are effective in improving motivation for change and modifying maladaptive communication patterns among couples with marital conflict. However, Imago Relationship Therapy showed greater effectiveness due to its stronger emphasis on empathy, emotional bonding reconstruction, and emotional awareness. These findings may assist family counselors and therapists in selecting more appropriate interventions for couples experiencing marital conflict.
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