Relational communication as a moderator for links between family of origin adversity and marital satisfaction

• Published date: 01 October 2023
• Author: Xiaohui Sophie Li,Jocelyn S. Wikle,Jolyn Schraedel,Jeremy Yorgason,Spencer James
• Date: 01 October 2023
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12808

RESEARCH

Relational communication as a moderator

for links between family of origin adversity

and marital satisfaction

Xiaohui Sophie Li

1

|Jocelyn S. Wikle

2

|Jolyn Schraedel

2

|

Jeremy Yorgason

2

|Spencer James

2

1

School of Family and Consumer Sciences,

Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

2

School of Family Life, Brigham Young

University, Provo, UT

Correspondence

Xiaohui Sophie Li, Wirtz Hall 158, 1425 West

Lincoln Hwy., DeKalb, IL 60115, USA.

Email: xli@niu.edu

Abstract

Objective: This study evaluated family of origin adversity

and later marital satisfaction, and the possible moderating

role of relational communication ability of husbands and

wives.

Background: Family of origin adversity, including parental

marital conflict, has a significant negative relationship

with offspring’s marital decisions, dynamics, and out-

comes. Because people with family of origin adversity can-

not change their past experiences, studying moderating

factors could be helpful for couples’marital satisfaction.

Method: This study examined dyadic data from the Couple

Relationships and Transition Experience (CREATE)

study, a nationally representative sample of 1,471 newly-

wed couples in the United States. The study employed an

actor–partner interdependence model to evaluate commu-

nication as a moderator for links between family of origin

adversity and relationship satisfaction.

Results: The study confirmed the negative relationship

between family of origin adversity and subsequent marital

satisfaction for actors and partners for both husbands

and wives. Further, the study found that relational com-

munication ability by either partner offset negative links

between wives’family of origin adversity and husbands’

martial satisfaction, but not wives’martial satisfaction.

Conclusion: This study confirmed the salience of family of

origin adversity as couples establish new marriages. It also

highlighted the value of communication as a possible path

toward intervention regarding negative experiences from a

family of origin, particularly when considering connections

between wives’family of origin adversity and husbands’

relationship satisfaction.

Received: 16 December 2021Revised: 20 July 2022Accepted: 24 July 2022

DOI: 10.1111/fare.12808

© 2022 National Council on Family Relations.

Family Relations. 2023;72:1955–1973. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/fare 1955

Implications: This research suggests couple communication

may be a valuable tool with application for couples, family

life educators, and couple therapists as they help couples

successfully navigate difficulties from their families of origin.

KEYWORDS

family of origin adversity, marital satisfaction, moderation, newlyweds,

parent modeling, relational communication ability

The newlywed period is a critical transitional juncture as marital practices established

during this period often have long-term ramifications for couples (Lavner et al., 2014;

Williamson, 2021), and the first years of marriage present the greatest risk for divorce (Mayol-

Garcia et al., 2021). The complications posed by persistent marital dissatisfaction across genera-

tions are therefore especially important to address during the newlywed period as new husbands

and wives establish their own marital dynamics (Carr & Kellas, 2018). For newlyweds, negative

experiences in their family of origin, namely family of origin adversity, may put them at

increased risk for poor marriage outcomes, with destructive conflict behaviors carried over from

the previous generation (Monk et al., 2021). Family of origin adversity could come in the form

of negative experiences and atmospheres while growing up (River et al., 2022), or it could come

in the form of family of origin adversity involving poor parental marriage quality (Gager

et al., 2016). Research has shown that parental divorce has negative links with offspring’s atti-

tudes toward marriage (Boyer-Pennington et al., 2018). This could be, in part, because parental

divorce connects with anxious and avoidant attachment styles (D’Rozario & Pilkington, 2022).

Even if parents’marriages remain intact, conflict between parents links to an increased likeli-

hood of offspring’s cohabiting dissolution or divorce (Gager et al., 2016). According to extant

research, these negative links may be sensitive to gender and may differ between husbands

and wives (Dennison et al., 2014; Jarnecke & South, 2013; River et al., 2022), with women often

suffering more than men following emotional maltreatment in their family of origin (Peterson

et al., 2018).

The vulnerability-stress-adaption model of marriage (Karney & Bradbury, 1995) suggests

couples may have enduring vulnerabilities stemming from an intergenerational transmission of

family processes and these vulnerabilities can create stress in a marriage. However, not every-

one who experienced adversity in their family of origin or whose parents modeled an unhappy

marriage is destined to have an unsatisfying marital relationship or face divorce. There may be

adaptive factors that help couples successfully navigate vulnerabilities from their families of ori-

gin and that associate with improved couples’marital outcomes. Communication ability may

be one such adaptation that could help newlywed couples (Carr & Kellas, 2018). In this study,

we aimed to evaluate whether relational communication ability, the ability to communicate well

between spouses, moderated links between negative factors from each spouse’s family of origin

and marital relationship satisfaction (see Figure 1). The evaluation offers insight into a viable

mechanism for coping with adverse circumstances from families of origin that couples may

bring to a marriage.

Vulnerability-stress-adaption model of marriage

The vulnerability-stress-adaption model of marriage (VSAMM) (Karney & Bradbury, 1995)

provides a framework for relating vulnerabilities stemming from one’s background to marital

outcomes. In this case, we focus on marital satisfaction as a key marital outcome of interest.

This model posits that marital satisfaction and stability can be accounted for by a combination

1956 FAMILY RELATIONS