Waring E M, Patton D, Neron C A, Linker W
Can J Psychiatry. 1986 Nov;31(8):720-6. doi: 10.1177/070674378603100805.
Epidemiological research has demonstrated that married individuals generally experience better emotional health than the single, divorced and widowed. The married populations in these studies were not evaluated on the basis of the quality of their marital relationships. Research on the interpersonal quality of marital relationships in the general married population has rarely been reported in the psychiatric literature. A sample of the general married population (n = 250 couples) completed a self-report questionnaire which measures the quality and the quantity of intimacy in marriage. Four types of marital patterns were operationally defined by total intimacy score, pattern of scale profile, and social desirability scores. The relative frequencies of these types of marriages are reported. The prevalence of symptoms of non-psychotic emotional illness in one or both spouses in the four categories of marriage is reported. Thirty-one percent (31%) of the couples report marriages with absent and/or deficient intimacy. Couples with "absent and/or deficient" marital intimacy had a significantly higher proportion of spouses with symptoms of non-psychotic emotional illness. This study suggests that previous research may have confounded the variables of marital status and marital quality in the study of psychiatric disorder. These studies may have under-estimated the positive effect of an "optimally" intimate relationship.
流行病学研究表明，已婚者通常比单身、离异和丧偶者的情绪健康状况更好。这些研究中的已婚人群并未根据其婚姻关系的质量进行评估。在精神病学文献中，很少有关于一般已婚人群婚姻关系人际质量的研究报道。一个由一般已婚人群组成的样本（n = 250对夫妻）完成了一份自我报告问卷，该问卷测量婚姻中亲密关系的质量和数量。通过总亲密得分、量表剖面图模式和社会期望得分，从操作上定义了四种婚姻模式。报告了这些婚姻类型的相对频率。报告了四类婚姻中一方或双方配偶出现非精神病性情绪疾病症状的患病率。31%的夫妻报告其婚姻中亲密关系缺失和/或不足。婚姻亲密关系“缺失和/或不足”的夫妻中，出现非精神病性情绪疾病症状的配偶比例显著更高。这项研究表明，先前的研究可能在精神疾病研究中混淆了婚姻状况和婚姻质量这两个变量。这些研究可能低估了“最佳”亲密关系的积极作用。
