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To explore the relationships among fertility stress, dyadic coping and marital quality in couples undergoing in vitro fertilization‐embryo transfer (IVF‐ET). Couples receiving IVF‐ET treatment at the clinic of the reproductive medicine centre of a hospital in China from February 2023 to October 2023 were selected by convenience sampling. A general information questionnaire, the Infertility Fertility Stress Scale (COMP‐FPSS‐SF), the dyadic coping inventory, and the marital adjustment test were used to evaluate the results. AMOS24.0 software was used to construct an actor‐partner interdependence model that extended to mediation to analyze the relationships among couples' fertility stress, dyadic coping, and marital quality. The fertility stress level of IVF‐ET wives was significantly higher than that of their husbands (p < 0.05). Wives' levels of dyadic coping and marital quality were significantly lower than those of husbands (p < 0.05). Fertility stress, dyadic coping, and marital quality were positively correlated between IVF‐ET couples (p < 0.01). In terms of the actor effect, the fertility stress of IVF‐ET couples had a significant impact on their marital quality through their dyadic coping (β = −0.188, p < 0.05; β = −0.109, p < 0.05). In terms of partner effects, wives' fertility stress significantly affected their husbands' marital quality through their own or their husbands' dyadic coping (β = −0.055, p < 0.01; β = 0.157, p < 0.01). Dyadic coping mediates the relationship between fertility stress and marital quality in IVF‐ET couples. Nurses can use husbands and wives as central individuals and dyadic coping as the starting point to formulate intervention measures to reduce fertility stress and improve marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data from the 2018 Chinese Family Panel Studies, this study examines the associations between premarital cohabitation, marital satisfaction, and the probability of a subsequent divorce and captures the gradated variations of marital quality by incorporating divorce and self-rated marital satisfaction into a generic measure of marital quality. Findings show positive associations between cohabitation and divorce and negative associations between cohabitation and marital quality. Results further show that the negative association between cohabitation and marital quality is weakened by better education, higher income, and rural origin, and stronger among men. The consistent negative associations between cohabitation and all the marital quality outcomes indicate the persistent strength of the norm of universal marriage, based on which cohabitation is still considered substantively distinct from marriage both in terms of legal status and social recognition. The diverse social gradients of the cohabitation-marital quality links reflect the heterogeneous social meanings of cohabitation in contemporary China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a theory that explains the rise of foot‐binding in historical China, in response to a gender‐asymmetric social mobility shock that dispersed men's quality distribution in the marriage market. The theory characterizes the marriage market equilibrium and women's competition strategies before and after the shock. Empirical evidence using archival data corroborates the theoretical predictions that greater men's social mobility opportunities encouraged foot‐binding and that a greater cost of women's labor discouraged foot‐binding. The article thus highlights that costly gender norms can be traced back to gender asymmetry in social mobility opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marriage is embedded in the web of spouses' broader social ties, and relationship quality with parents and parents‐in‐law is associated with marital quality. Guided by Family Systems theory and using three waves of dyadic data from 268 Chinese different‐sex couples across the first several years of marriage, we first conducted a Random‐Intercept Actor‐Partner Interdependence Cross‐lagged Panel Model (RI‐APIM‐CLPM) to examine the within‐family longitudinal associations among husbands' and wives' relationship quality with parents, parents‐in‐law, and spouse. Then, husbands' and wives' filial obligations were added as predictors of between‐family differences in their own and their partner's relationship quality in the three social ties. Among husbands, increased relationship quality in one social tie (e.g., with parents) predicted reductions in relationship quality in the other social ties (e.g., relationships with parents‐in‐law and marital quality). Our examination of between‐family differences demonstrated that high levels of filial obligations predicted higher intergenerational relationship quality and marital quality. By simultaneously considering the within‐family associations of multiple social ties and how filial obligations account for between‐family differences in relationship quality, we contribute to a nuanced understanding of how Chinese couples' romantic partnerships are embedded in their broader family system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Previous studies have shown that depression is a serious public health problem among children, and it is necessary to explore the causes and potential mechanisms of depression in children. Therefore, this study examined the relationship between parental marital quality and children's depression and the mediating effects of parental harsh discipline—psychological aggression and corporal punishment—in China. The participants were 735 primary school students from grades 5–6 and their parents in Chinese families. Participants completed a series of questionnaires measuring marital quality, harsh discipline and children's depression. Two path analysis models—one for fathers and the other for mothers—were constructed. The findings indicated that maternal but not paternal marital quality was negatively and directly associated with children's depression. Both fathers' and mothers' psychological aggression mediated the associations between parental marital quality and children's depression, while fathers' and mothers' corporal punishment did not. The findings from this study imply that interventions for decreasing children's depression should not only focus on improving maternal marital quality but also target fathers' and mothers' harsh discipline, especially psychological aggression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to analyse the relationship between perceived social support and marital quality in balanced translocation patients and their spouses undergoing a preimplantation genetic testing (PGT) treatment cycle in China. The authors assessed the actor and partner effects of perceived social support on marital quality in patient–spouse dyads using a dyadic analysis approach. In total, 59 couples were assessed using self-report questionnaires for marital quality and perceived social support. There were significant differences in marital quality between patients and their spouses (p=.0025) based on the APIM (actor–partner interdependence model) analyses. The perceived social support of both patients (p=.0076) and spouses (p<.001) had a significant effect on individual marital quality for actor effects. Partner effects showed that patients' perceived social support had a significant effect on spouses' marital quality (p=.0156) and the spouses' perceived social support had a significant effect on patients' marital quality (p=.0084). The findings indicate that the level of perceived social support affected both his/her own marital quality and that of his/her spouse. What is already known on this subject? Infertility and reproductive treatments affect both partners, that is, the couple as a unit and have a negative impact on an individual's marital satisfaction and social relationships. What do the results of this study add? There are significant differences in marital quality between balanced translocation patients and their spouses. Perceived social support significantly correlated with marital quality in both the actor and partner effects. What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? Health professionals should provide couple-based interventions involving both patients and spouses throughout the PGT treatment to improve perceived social support, thereby improving their marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the developmental cascades of marital quality, harsh discipline, and child externalizing behavior in a Chinese sample of 976 father–mother dyads and their children (initial M age = 7.63 years, 52.2% boys). Marital quality, harsh discipline, and child externalizing behavior were assessed at three annual measurement occasions. Cascade models indicated the unidirectional rather than bidirectional relations between the variables over and above within-time covariance and across-time stability. Both increased maternal and paternal marital quality in a given year predicted decreases in child externalizing behavior in the next year. Child externalizing behavior in a given year predicted increases in both maternal and paternal harsh discipline in the next year. Moreover, increased paternal but not maternal marital quality in a given year predicted decreases in psychological aggression rather than corporal punishment in the next year. Moreover, the indirect effect of marital quality on child externalizing behavior through harsh discipline was not found. In addition, the potential indirect effect of marital quality on harsh discipline through child externalizing behavior was observed. These findings highlight the importance of examining developmental cascades across family subsystems and efforts to improve marital relationship to promote child adjustment as well as parent–child interaction during middle childhood in Chinese society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To evaluate the effectiveness of a nurse-led couples intervention on the marital quality of couples coping with gynecological cancer. Couples coping with gynecological cancer were randomly allocated to the intervention (n = 51) and the control (n = 53) group. The intervention group received the nurse-led couples intervention developed based on the Preliminary Live with Love Conceptual Framework plus routine nursing care. The control group received only routine nursing care. Marital quality, including marital satisfaction, marital communication, and sexual life, were measured using Olson Marital Quality Questionnaire at 3 timepoints (baseline, 2- and 3-months following baseline). Generalized estimating equation was used to examine the effectiveness of the intervention in improving marital quality. Patients and husbands in the intervention group had significantly improved marital satisfaction scores (Waldχ2 = 11.109, P = 0.001; Waldχ2 = 4.849, P = 0.028); the interaction between intervention and time had a significant effect on the marital communication of both patients and their husbands (Waldχ2 = 6.214, P = 0.045; Waldχ2 = 15.460, P < 0.001). Patient-reported and husband-reported sexual life was not significantly influenced by the intervention (Waldχ2 = 0.167, P = 0.683; Waldχ2 = 3.215, P = 0.073). The nurse-led couples intervention based on the Preliminary Live with Love Conceptual Framework improved marital satisfaction and marital communication, but not sexual life, of couples coping with gynecological cancer. The provision of professional sexual health psychology training for nurses may be crucial if nurse-led models are to truly support the sexual health of couples coping with gynecological cancer. Registration: Registered with www.chictr.org.cn (ChiCTR2000034232). • Development of a nurse-led couples intervention based on the P-LLCF for GC couples. • This intervention improved GC couples' marital satisfaction and marital communication. • This intervention has the potential to improve the marital quality of GC couples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing from the stress resistance process within the conservation of resources theory, this study examined how resources at multiple ecological levels—personal (self-esteem), relational (spousal support), and social network (relationships with parents and parents-in-law)—moderate the spillover and crossover effects from external stressors to trajectories of marital quality. We used three-annual-wave, dyadic data from 268 heterosexual Chinese couples who were at the beginning stages of marriage. Consistent with theory, personal, relational, and social network resources all buffered the detrimental effects of external stressors for marital quality. Further, nuanced findings emerged, likely given the social cultural context in contemporary China. Specifically, gender differences emerged in whether a specific resource attenuated the detrimental effects of external stressors (e.g., husbands' vs. wives' self-esteem attenuated detrimental effects of external stressors). Moreover, opposite patterns existed for the short-term versus long-term results for husbands' relational resources. In sum, our findings highlight that when helping couples cope with stressors, it is necessary to (a) include available resources at multiple ecological levels (personal, relational, social network) and (b) consider whether social cultural backgrounds may have influenced the effectiveness of a specific resource. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the mediating role of perceived partner responsiveness in the relationship between emotional reactivity and marital quality among Chinese couples. The survey participants included 550 couples from 28 provinces in the Eastern, Central and Western China. The ages of the husbands range from 39 to 64 years old whose average age is 46.45 years old, while the ages of the wives vary between 32 and 62 years old whose average age is 45.08 years old. The Emotion Reactivity Scale, Perceived Partner Responsiveness Scale, and Quality of Marriage Index were selected for measurement. The results showed that the scores of husbands perceived partner responsiveness and marital quality were significantly higher than those of wives, and there was no significant difference in emotional reactivity between husbands and wives. Correlation analysis showed that emotional reactivity of couples was negatively correlated with perceived partner responsiveness and marital quality, while perceived partner responsiveness was positively correlated with marital quality. Based on the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM), it was found that the emotional reactivity of both spouses was a significant negative predictor of their marital quality (actor effect). It also significantly negatively predicted the marital quality of the spouse (partner effect). The mediating effect analysis results showed that the husbands' perceived partner responsiveness played a mediating role in the emotional reactivity of the couples on marital quality of the husbands, and the wives' perceived partner responsiveness played a mediating role in the emotional reactivity of the couples on marital quality of the husbands. The wives' perceived partner responsiveness played a mediating role in the effect of the couples' emotional reactivity on the wives' marital quality. The results of this study contribute to a better understanding of the mechanism of emotional reactivity of couples affecting marital quality and have a guiding significance for improving marital quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Poor spousal health and low marital satisfaction were independently associated with sleep quality and sleep duration among older adults in China. • Higher levels of psychological resilience were associated with increased odds of good sleep quality and decreased odds of short sleep duration. • Psychological resilience mitigated the odds of poor spousal health and low marital satisfaction on the risk of short sleep duration. This study aims to examine the moderating role of psychological resilience in the association between two common marital relationship stressors (poor spousal health and low marital satisfaction) and sleep (sleep quality and sleep duration) among older adults in China. This study used four waves of data from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (2008–2018) (N = 8769), and mixed-effects logistic models were used. Poor spousal health and low marital satisfaction were independently associated with increased odds of poor sleep quality and short sleep duration, and decreased odds of long sleep duration. Greater psychological resilience was associated with increased odds of good sleep quality and decreased odds of short sleep duration, but had no significant effect on long sleep duration. In addition, psychological resilience moderated the odds of poor spousal health and low marital satisfaction on the risk of short sleep duration among older Chinese adults. The findings provide novel evidence for the increased importance of marital stress and psychological resilience on sleep health in later life. Policy interventions are needed to support vulnerable older adults who experience poor spousal health and/or low marital satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While China has decreasing female labor participation and increasing marital instability, compared to the rest of the world, its female labor participation rate is higher on average. The effect of female labor force status on couples' marital satisfaction, as one of the main factors for evaluating marital quality, has been separately discussed, including extensive margins considering whether women are in the labor market and intensive margins on women working hours per week. This study analyzed data from the 2014 China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) using a binary logit model and a stability test. Results showed that the work hours, rather than the occupational status, of women affect marital satisfaction. In addition, regardless of the gender role attitudes held by the couple, marital satisfaction increases when women are in the labor market. This study has retroactively reviewed the effects of women working outside the home on marital quality. The dual roles of Chinese women, as both employee and homemaker, have been socially accepted. However, the requirements of maintaining multiple roles often contradict and present conflicts among the roles, time, and pressure, in the long run, giving rise to marital dissatisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the association between changing family relationships (marital relationships and parent-child relationships) and adolescents' mental health in transitional China. It further explored the potential moderating role of living arrangements in the abovementioned associations. The study design used in the study is a longitudinal study. Data were derived from wave 1 (academic year: 2013–2014, grade 7) and wave 2 (academic year: 2014–2015, grade 8) of the China Education Panel Survey (CEPS). We used fixed-effects models in the longitudinal data analysis (N = 7237). Descriptive analysis indicated significant changes in both adolescents' mental health and self-reported family relationships during the transition from grade 7 to grade 8. The fixed-effects models showed that high marital quality and close parent-child relationships improved the mental health of adolescents. Interaction analysis suggested that paternal living arrangements significantly moderated the association between the father-child relationships and adolescents' mental health: effects of the father-child relationships were weaker among those living away from their biological fathers than among those living with their biological fathers. Family relationships play an important role in shaping Chinese adolescents' psychological status. However, the effect of the father-child relationships varies based on the paternal living arrangements. This finding highlights the importance of considering the context in examining the effects of family relationships on adolescents' well-being. • In the transition from grade 7 to grade 8, adolescents' mental health and family relationships change significantly. • Marital quality of parents is positively associated with mental health of adolescents. • Quality of parent-child relationships is positively associated with mental health of adolescents. • Links between father-child relationships and adolescents' mental health differ by paternal living arrangements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The use of mobile social media enables individuals to learn about others' lives, which may lead to upward social comparison. Evidence has shown that upward social comparison on mobile social media can have negative effect for individuals' mental health, such as a higher risk of depression. Previous studies on this issue have mainly focused on adolescents and college students, but less on married adults' well-being. Moreover, mechanisms underlying this association have not been well-documented.Methods: A total of 514 Chinese married adults (62% female) were recruited from 26 regions in China. They completed measures of upward social comparison on mobile social media, envy, marriage quality and depression.Results: The results showed a positive association between upward social comparison on mobile social media and depression, which was completely mediated by envy. The direct effect of upward social comparison on depression, and the relation between upward social comparison and envy, were both moderated by marital quality. More specifically that upward social comparison on mobile social media was more strongly associated with depression and envy in adults with lower marital quality.Limitations: This study only focused on the interpersonal factor (i.e., marriage quality) as a moderating variable, not investigating the potential moderating roles of personality factors and other interpersonal factors. In addition, the cross-sectional in design could not examine the causal relationships among the variables.Conclusions: High marriage quality can protect married adults from the adverse effects of upward social comparison on mobile social media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Psychopathy is closely related to many negative interpersonal outcomes in daily life, including violence. Therefore, psychopathy intervention in subclinical individuals has significant application value., Objective: Guided by the personality-relationship transaction model and social investment theory, this study examined how marital quality affects self- and partner-rated psychopathy. We also used the actor-partner interdependence mediation model to explore the mediating effect of communication., Methods: We examined self-reports and partner reports of psychopathy, marital quality, and communication among 260 married Chinese couples., Results: The results indicated that marital quality directly influenced couples' self-rated psychopathy, with both actor and partner effects on husbands' psychopathy and actor effects on wives' psychopathy. Moreover, verbal communication had mediating effects at time 2 between marital quality at time 1 and partner-reported psychopathy at time 3. Meanwhile, the mediating effect of nonverbal communication was not significant., Conclusion: Our investigation of relationship effects on psychopathy revealed that the underlying mechanisms differed between self- and partner-rated psychopathy. The findings can highlight directions for exploring potential intervention strategies for subclinical psychopathy., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objectives: Frequent exposure to poor marital relationship is closely associated with behavioral and emotional problems in children, including oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms. However, the longitudinal links between parental marital quality and child ODD symptoms, and whether these links vary by child or parent gender remain unclear. In the present study, we aimed to examine the bidirectional associations between parental marital quality and child ODD symptoms and whether the associations differed across parent and child gender. Methods: The sample included 253 children with ODD and their parents and teachers from Mainland China. Parental marital quality and child ODD symptoms were measured at two waves (T1, T2), roughly 1 year apart. Results: Results from cross-lagged analyses showed bidirectional associations between parental marital quality and child ODD symptoms in the whole sample. Specifically, more child ODD symptoms predicted poorer parental marital quality, and lower levels of parental marital quality predicted subsequent increase in child ODD symptoms. Multigroup path analysis indicated that these associations differed across child gender. That is, girls but not boys' ODD symptoms predicted poorer parental marital quality; marital quality predicted subsequent ODD symptoms for boys but not for girls. There was no difference in the association between marital quality and child ODD symptoms for mothers and fathers. Conclusions: Results highlight the importance of considering child gender in understanding the bidirectional relations between parental marital quality and child ODD symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Triangulation is an important subject in marriage and family therapy. Chinese family culture emphasizes consanguinity, which means that adult children have great difficulty separating from their original families and establishing clear boundaries. This results in the unique problem of family-of-origin triangulation in Chinese marriages. The current study explored the relationship between family-of-origin triangulation and the marital quality of Chinese couples, and examined the mediating role of in-law relationships. A total of 341 Chinese couples, ranging from newlyweds to those with school-aged children, participated in the survey. The results demonstrate that family-of-origin triangulation of both husbands and wives negatively predicted wives' marital quality, whereas husbands' marital quality was only predicted by their own family-of-origin triangulation. Moreover, family-of-origin triangulation not only predicted marital quality directly, but also indirectly by damaging the relationships with in-laws. The actor effects of family-of-origin triangulation were partially mediated by in-law relationships, whereas the partner effects of husbands' triangulation on wives' marital quality was fully mediated by in-law relationships. Family therapists in China should pay more attention to intergenerational relationships and reestablishing the sub-system boundaries of husband and wife, and at the same time, focus on repairing the couple's relationships with the in-laws. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on three annual waves of data obtained from 194 Chinese couples during the first few years of marriage, this study examined how couples' marital conflict resolution styles might change over time and also the association between such patterns of changes and the developmental trajectories of marital quality. Using latent transition analysis, at each of the three waves, we consistently identified four groups of couples based on the various types of strategies they employed when resolving marital conflicts: Cooperative Couples, Avoidant Couples, Aggressive Couples, and Aggressive Wife-Avoidant Husband Couples, and then we further classified couples into five groups based on their conflict resolution style transition patterns across the three waves: Steadily Constructive Pattern Group, More Constructive Pattern Group, Unpredictable Pattern Group, More Destructive Pattern Group, and Steadily Destructive Pattern Group. Lastly, utilizing the dyadic growth curve model, we linked the conflict resolution profiles identified at the first wave to both the initial levels of and the change rates of marital quality across waves and also linked the further identified conflict resolution style transition pattern groups to the change rates of marital quality across waves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the actor-partner interdependence moderation model, this study provides a first look at the associations among sacrifice, commitment, and marital quality during the early years of marriage based on two annual waves of data obtained from Chinese couples. We found that both husbands' and wives' perceived cost of sacrifice (HSC and WSC, respectively) rather than frequency of sacrifice was negatively associated with the concurrent levels of their own marital quality, and that HSC was also negatively related to the subsequent changes in their own marital quality. Moreover, wives' commitment (WCOM) moderated the association between their perceived cost of sacrifice and the concurrent levels of their own marital quality; husbands' commitment (HCOM) moderated the associations between WSC and the concurrent levels of both husbands' and wives' marital quality; and WCOM moderated the association between their perceived frequency of sacrifice and the subsequent changes in husbands' marital quality. Such findings advance our understanding of how sacrifice and commitment operate in conjunction to influence marital well-being during a stressful, transitional family life stage in a historically understudied population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on two samples of Hong Kong Chinese adolescents, the psychometric properties of a scale assessing adolescent perceptions of non-conflict related attributes in the marital life of their parents were examined. Results from both samples showed that the scale possessed good internal consistency, test-retest reliability, criteria-related validity and convergent validity. For the dimensionality of the measure, results suggested that there was one factor of the scale. The present study is a pioneer attempt to examine the psychometric properties of a scale assessing perceived non-conflict related attributes in parental marital relationship amongst Chinese adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: While social integration among individuals with psychosis differs by social context, this has rarely been investigated across urban vs. rural settings. For individuals with psychosis, marriage may be a key component of social integration. This study aims to compare marriage outcomes for individuals with psychosis in urban vs. rural settings in China, where marriage has been almost universal among individuals without psychosis.Methods: In a large community-based study in four provinces representing 12% of China's population, we identified 393 individuals with psychosis (112 never treated). We used adjusted Poisson regression models to compare marriage status for those living in urban (n = 96) vs. rural (n = 297) contexts.Results: While urban and rural residents had similar impairments due to symptoms, urban female residents were 2.72 times more likely to be unmarried than their rural counterparts (95% CI 1.19-6.22, p < 0.0176). Stratified analyses indicated that this marital disadvantage occurred primarily among urban females with an earlier age of onset. No differences were found among males.Conclusions: Our findings indicate that urban contexts impeded opportunities for marriage for female individuals with psychosis. These data suggest that urban women with earlier age of onset have difficulty in marrying which may be related to economic expectations of women in urban areas. Research examining contextual mechanisms that affect marriage may further understanding of social integration in China and other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A growing number of studies have demonstrated the importance of marital quality among patients undergoing medical procedures. The aim of the study was to expand the literature by examining the relationships between stress, social support and family and marriage life among hemodialysis patients. A total of 114 participants, including 38 patients and their spouses and 38 healthy controls, completed a survey package assessing social support, stress, family functioning and marital satisfaction and quality. We found that hemodialysis patients and spouses were less flexible in family adaptability compared with the healthy controls. Patients and spouses had more stress and instrumental social support compared with healthy people. Stress was negatively associated with marital satisfaction. Instrumental support was not associated with family or marital outcomes. The association between marital quality and support outside of family was positive in healthy individuals but was negative in patients and their spouses. Family adaptability was positively associated with support within family as perceived by patients and positively associated with emotional support as perceived by spouses. In conclusion, findings suggest that social support may promote adjustment depending on the source and type. Future research should pay more attention to the types and sources of social support in studying married couples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past three decades, a distinctly post-socialist form of marriage with high rates of divorce as well as rising rates of marriage and remarriage has emerged as the result of a “triple turn” by the party-state in regard to the institution of marriage: a “turn toward” marriage as a voluntary contract, a “turn away” from close surveillance of sexual relationships, and a “turn away” from protection of communal property. The one-child policy runs against these three prevailing “turns” toward privatization, but to date this contradiction has been muted by a de facto distinction between (strong) control over reproduction and (weak) control over sexual relationships. Moreover, as illustrated here through close analysis of three recent interpretations 解释 of the Supreme People’s Court and interviews with ordinary citizens in Guangzhou and Shanghai, by continuing to extend the logic of voluntary contract to intimate relationships, the party-state’s own actions (and inaction) serve to accelerate privatization of marriage in post-socialist China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The mutual association between marital quality and parenting stress was evidenced among families of ODD children. • The parenting stress directly predicts low marital quality, and impaired marital quality predicts parenting stress largely through parental depression, revealing two different processes for their interplays among families of ODD children. An increasing body of research showed families with ODD children struggle with impaired quality of family interactions, such as low marital quality and high parenting stress. Yet relatively little is known about their interplay in families of children with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms. To examine longitudinal, reciprocal associations, we utilize a three-year, cross-lagged design with a sample of 340 Chinese families of children with ODD symptoms. We also examined the role of parental depression. Marital quality, parenting stress, and parental depression were measured at each wave (T1, T2, and T3) across three years. Results support the "spillover" hypothesis in both directions, such that parenting stress significantly and directly predicts low marital quality, and impaired marital quality predicts parenting stress largely through parental depression. Our findings clearly evidenced the reciprocal relationship between marital and parent-child relationship, and further revealed two different processes for their interplays, among families of children with ODD symptoms. The present study extended the prior understanding of associations between marital and parent-child subsystems and provided suggestions for enhancing the quality of whole family life for families of children with ODD symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the inception of the economic reform, marital relationship in urban China has undergone dramatic transformations. Though the burgeoning body of scholarly research has demonstrated that marital quality has increasingly become an important aspect of family life among married persons in urban China, both the conceptualization and measurement of marital quality remain underdeveloped. The purpose of this pilot study is to develop and validate a comprehensive and culturally appropriate marital quality scale, namely the Chinese Marital Quality Scale (CMQS). Results from the confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) conducted on a sample of 387 married persons from Beijing indicate that the CMQS can be conceptualized as a two-factorial and multidimensional construct, encompassing marital happiness, marital interaction, marital disagreement, marital problem, and marital instability. Additional statistical analyses also indicate that the CMQS has exhibited satisfactory reliability and concurrent validity. It is thus concluded that the CMQS is a reliable and valid instrument to measure marital quality in contemporary Beijing and possibly in other Chinese cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Drawing on the actor-partner interdependence model (APIM), the present study investigated the relationship between Chinese middle-aged and old couples' Confucian coping thinking and their marital quality in the hope to provide a theoretical basis for ameliorating marital quality., Methods: With 744 middle-aged and old couples as participants, the Confucian Coping Questionnaire (CCQ) and the Quality of Marriage Index (QMI) were employed to probe the relationship between responsibility thinking (RT), pro-setback thinking (PT), fate thinking (FT), and marital quality., Results: Husbands' and wives' scores in responsibility thinking and pro-setback thinking had significantly positive correlations with their own and their spouses' scores in marital quality, respectively, and husbands' and wives' scores in fate thinking had significantly negative correlations with their own and their spouses' marital quality, respectively. Husbands' responsibility thinking, pro-setback thinking, and fate thinking had a significant actor effect. Husbands' responsibility thinking and fate thinking had a significant partner effect. Wives' responsibility thinking, pro-setback thinking, and fate thinking had a significant actor effect. Wives' responsibility thinking and pro-setback thinking had a significant partner effect., Conclusion: From the perspective of dyadic relationships, the present study found that responsibility thinking and pro-setback thinking could positively predict marital quality, while pro-setback thinking could negatively predict marital quality., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Fan, Wu, Tao and Chen.)

The debate over the association between wives' relative income (WRI) and marital quality remain controversial in the west; however, this important research area has been surprisingly under-studied against the backdrop of the fast socioeconomic transition in contemporary China. Using 763 urban Chinese wives, this study examined both the mediating and the moderating role of perceived equity between WRI and marital quality. Hierarchical multiple regression indicated that urban Chinese wives' relative income had a negative impact on their marital happiness and a positive impact on marital instability to a small extent. The mediating role of perceived equity was not supported in this study; however, perceived equity could buffer the positive effect of wives' relative income on marital instability, especially for higher-earning wives. This study contributes to understanding wives' socioeconomic resources and marital quality from an equity perspective in the Chinese context and generates implications for cross-cultural research on perceived equity. It also serves for marital counseling on improving higher-earning wives' perception of fairness as well as family-friendly policy making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary objectives of this study were to examine: 1) fathers' parenting styles, and 2) the relationships between selected variables within the family ecosystems (e.g., father's age, education, work hours, income, and psychological distress, child's age and sex, as well as family income, number of children in the family, and marital quality) and fathers' parenting styles within the Chinese families in Malaysia. One hundred fathers, with children between the ages of 7 to 10 years from two-parent Chinese families residing in three urban cities in the state of Selangor in Malaysia, participated in the current study. Respondents completed a self-administered questionnaire which consisted of the following measures: Edwards Parenting Scale, Kessler Psychological Distress Scale - K10, Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale, and a Demographic Sheet. Descriptive analyses reveal that the proportion of the respondents practicing authoritative (37.0%) parenting styles was the highest, and this was followed by authoritarian (34.0%) and permissive (29.0%). styles. Correlation analyses indicated that fathers' level of psychological distress and the number of children in the family significantly and positively related to the authoritarian parenting style, whereas fathers' level of education and report of marital quality significantly and positively related to authoritative parenting style, with the number of children being significantly and negatively related to the authoritative parenting style. Findings are interpreted in line with the Chinese cultural expectations for fathering behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vitiligo can adversely affect the quality of life and sexual relationships of patients. Combination of the DLQI with the generic SF-36 and ENRICH may give further insight in the evaluation of the burden in vitiligo patients. We sought to assess the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and marital quality of Chinese vitiligo patients and to identify the relevant clinical and socio-demographic determinants. A total of 101 vitiligo patients and 126 healthy controls completed the questionnaires. HRQoL was measured using DLQI and SF-36, and marital quality was measured using the ENRICH marital inventory. Patients with vitiligo experienced significantly impaired health-related quality of life and unstable marital relationships. Gender, distribution pattern of vitiligo and disease severity were independent predictors of DLQI, SF-36 and ENRICH in this cohort. Vitiligo is associated with impairment of HRQoL and marital quality among Chinese patients. Alongside the medical interventions, the psychological and sociocultural assessment and intervention should be an essential part of the management of these cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Divorce has become more common in China. However, studies of Chinese marriage and family life have lagged because relevant data are sparse. Using a divorce risk model, this study compares China and the United States. Chinese data came from a 2007-2008 Shanghai study containing 1,070 married or cohabiting respondents. The U.S. data came from the 2000 Survey of Marriage and Family Life containing 2,100 married individuals. In both countries, marital quality (happiness) was higher when couples frequently shared activities, reported few arguments, had not experienced marital violence, thought it would be difficult to replace their current spouses, and grew up with happily married parents. Moreover, in both countries, divorce risk (thinking about divorce) was negatively associated with marital quality, marital duraition, believing that marriage is for life, reporting few quarrels, and the absence of marital violence. Differences between samples also emerged, which may reflect unique cultural aspects of Chinese and American society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This cross-cultural study explores the relationship between wives' unemployment and marital quality in reforming urban China. Using random survey data from Chengdu (N = 300), we estimate the effects of wives' unemployment, changing marital dynamics, and spousal responses to the wife's unemployment on marital affection and marital tension. Under the guidance of an integrated theoretical framework, our ordered logistic and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression results show that the wives' unemployment and subsequent economic hardship, the deteriorated mother-child relationship, the husbands' negative responses, and the wives' symptoms of psychological distress have deleterious effects on urban Chinese marriages. Moreover, our ancillary analyses indicate that the wives' unemployment is indirectly associated with marital affection through the husband's negative responses to the wife's unemployment. This result suggests that from the husband's perspective the wife's economic contributions and co-breadwinner role are vitally important for urban Chinese marriages. We conclude that as anticipated the wife's unemployment is indeed negatively associated with marital quality in reforming urban China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]