Does Marriage and Relationship Education Improve Couples' Communication? A Meta-Analytic Study
Year: 2008
Type: article
Study designs: Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis
Abstract: Using the results of 65 reports, this study examined the effect of marriage and relationship education (MRE) on couples' communication, and accounted for various moderators of this effect, including method of assessment and unit of analysis. This study is part of a comprehensive meta-analysis of MRE evaluation research conducted since 1975 (k = 124 codable reports). Overall, MRE produced modest but reliable effects on couples' communication. These effects were maintained at follow-up assessments and were not affected significantly by publication bias. No differences in effect were found for gender. Observational assessments did produce larger effects than self-report assessments. MRE produced the largest effect on positive conflict resolution outcomes. These results have important implications for research, intervention, and policy.
Author: Victoria L. Blanchard
Institution: Brigham Young University
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W632588983