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The process that infertile couples and those after a miscarriage go through is unpredictable and difficult to control; therefore, it is associated with a lowered sense of control for both partners. Uncontrolled stress creates a higher level of anxiety, which is associated not only with a lower quality of life but also with worse results from infertility treatment and higher risks of miscarriage. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between the partner’s perceived self-control and marital satisfaction in the context of the partners’ coping strategies. The actor-partner interdependence model was applied to 90 heterosexual married couples. Our results show that men who perceive their wives as being more self-controlled and women who are perceived by their husbands as being more self-controlled feel more satisfied in their relationships. The effect of a partner’s perceived self-control on satisfaction with the relationship was weaker when controlled for the length of marriage. It also appeared to be moderated through the spouses’ use of social support. We conclude that the effects of the partner’s perceived self-control and social support are strong for marital satisfaction in the context of infertility and miscarriage.

A child’s cancer, as a life-threatening illness, is classified as a traumatic event both for the child him-/herself and for his/her relatives. Struggling with a traumatic experience can bring positive consequences for an individual, which is referred to as posttraumatic growth. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between posttraumatic growth and spirituality understood as a personal resource in mothers of children with pediatric cancer. In total, 55 mothers whose children were in the phase of treatment and who had been staying with them in the hospital filled in a Posttraumatic Growth Inventory, Self-description Questionnaire of Spirituality, and the author’s short questionnaire on demographic variables and information on the child and his/her disease. A high level of posttraumatic development, especially in the area of life appreciation, was observed in the examined mothers. Spirituality was positively related to the emergence of positive change, in two particular components, ethical sensitivity and harmony. It seems that taking into account the area of spirituality when planning interventions and providing support in this group could foster coping with the situation and emergence of posttraumatic growth.

Pary zmagające się z bezpłodnością, jak i te po doświadczeniu poronienia poddawane są działaniu wielu stresorów, w obliczu których reagują lękiem, żalem i depresją, co negatywnie wpływa na płodność i wiąże się ze zwiększonym ryzykiem poronienia. Stosowanie różnych strategii radzenia sobie wydaje się mieć różny wpływ na stres związany z niepłodnością i doświadczeniami poronienia. Celem pracy było zbadanie związków miedzy depresyjnością związaną z niepłodnością i poronieniem a zadowoleniem z życia rodzinnego oraz roli stosowania strategii przekształcenia znaczenia sytuacji w przewidywaniu zadowolenia z życia rodzinnego w grupie depresyjnych par bezpłodnych oraz po doświadczeniu poronienia. W badaniu wzięło udział 90 małżeństw: 50 par z doświadczeniem poronienia oraz 40 par ze zdiagnozowaną niepłodnością. Uczestnicy wypełnili kwestionariusz badający poziom depresyjności (Test Giessen), strategii radzenia sobie z kryzysem w rodzinie (F-copes) oraz skalę oceny rodziny (Flexibility and Cohesion Evaluation Scales; SOR). Do analiz danych zastosowano actor partner interdependence model (APIM). Analizy wykazały, że wyższy poziom depresyjności partnerów zarówno z grupy małżeństw bezpłodnych jak i po poronieniu jest predyktorem niższego zadowolenia z życia rodzinnego u kobiet i mężczyzn, natomiast depresyjność męża ma istotne znaczenie dla zadowolenia z życia rodzinnego kobiet, ale nie odwrotnie. Strategia przekształcenia znaczenia sytuacji stosowana przez partnerów w obu badanych grupach w sposób istotny osłabia związek między ich depresyjnością a poziomem zadowolenia z życia. Stres jest jednym z ważnych czynników ryzyka mających wpływ na wyniki leczenia niepłodności i samoistne poronienia, dlatego ważnym jest zidentyfikowanie wszelkich czynników związanych tak z depresyjnością, jak i z zadowoleniem z życia niepłodnych par i tych po doświadczeniu poronienia. Couples struggling with infertility, as well as those after experiencing a miscarriage, deal with many types of stressors, in the face of which they react with anxiety, regret and depression, which negatively affects fertility and is associated with an increased risk of miscarriage. The use of different coping strategies seems to have different effects on the stress of infertility and miscarriage experiences. The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between depression related to infertility and miscarriage and satisfaction with family life, as well as the role of reframing in predicting family life satisfaction in the group of depressive infertile and post-miscarriage couples. The study involved 90 couples: 50 couples after miscarriage and 40 couples diagnosed with infertility. The participants completed a questionnaire examining the level of depressiveness (Giessen Test), coping strategies in the family (F-copes) and the family assessment scale (Flexibility and Cohesion Evaluation Scales; SOR). The actor partner interdependence model was used for data analysis. The findings showed that the higher level of partner depressiveness in both infertile and post-miscarriage couples predicted lower family life satisfaction in women and men, while husband depressiveness was significant for women's family life satisfaction, but not the other way around. The reframing strategy used by partners in both studied groups significantly weakened the relationship between partners’ depressiveness and the level of satisfaction with life. Stress is one of the most important risk factors influencing the results of infertility treatment and spontaneous miscarriage, therefore it is important to identify all factors related to depression symptoms and life satisfaction of infertile and post-miscarriage couples.

Recently, there has been growing interest in stress and coping strategies from a relational perspective. Researchers recognize the importance of a partner’s coping strategy in terms of relationship satisfaction and a relational sense of well-being. The aim of the article is to present the results of work on the Polish validation of the Dyadic Coping Inventory (DCI), which was developed by Bodenmann et al. (2008). Dyadic coping is a multidimensional construct which consists of stress communication by partners and four components of dyadic coping behavior: supporting, delegated, negative and common behavior. The DCI examines the quality of communication between partners and the level of dyadic coping with stress. The DCI was tested based on a study of 550 people (275 couples) aged between 20 and 72. The conducted analyses were aimed at checking the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Polish version of the DCI. Measurement invariance (MI) was also tested across genders on a Polish sample and across cultures on Polish, Swiss and Romanian samples. After rejection of three pairs of items, factor analysis of the DCI revealed a 5-factor structure with respect to a partner’s own dyadic coping and their partner’s dyadic coping and a 2-factor structure with respect to common dyadic coping. MI results confirmed the criteria for configural, metric and full scalar invariance across genders and configural, metric and partial scalar invariance across cultures. The Polish version of DCI has satisfactory psychometric characteristics and can be used to assess the dyadic coping of people in romantic relationships; also, it can be used in cross-cultural studies.

The aim of this study was to examine intrapersonal (actor) and interpersonal (partner) associations between attachment, assessed by the Adult Attachment Interview, and satisfaction with the relationship, as well as to establish the possibility of the mediatory effect of supportive, delegated, and common dyadic coping on the aforementioned associations. A dyadic approach has been introduced, using the actor–partner interdependence mediation model and data from 114 heterosexual couples, aged 26 to 60. It has been shown that one’s own secure attachment can be perceived as the predictor of one’s own relationship satisfaction in women and men and the predictor of a partner’s relationship satisfaction in men. The findings support the partially mediating role of dyadic coping in the association between attachment and relationship satisfaction and are a significant contribution to the issue of dyadic coping in general. Adults’ secure representations of their childhood experiences may be effective in using their partners as a secure base and also in serving as a secure base themselves, but it is not the sole influence on the quality of the couple’s experience together. The we-ness phenomenon and resulting clinical implications were discussed.

The study aims to investigate the differences concerning the religiosity (understood as the placement of religious constructs in the structure of a personality) and value system of young adults who...

BackgroundPrevious studies indicate that being in a relationship has a beneficial effect on the physical and mental health and also significantly affects the quality of life. One of the essential elements of the relationship is intimacy, which includes sharing experiences, support and mutual understanding, as well as respect and care for the good of the partner. Being in a relationship, the nature of this relationship (marriage vs. informal relationship) as well as the level of intimacy and the assessment of the quality of the relationship may be in relation to the personal sense of well-being. In this research we intended to estimate the significance of these variables for the sense of well-being and analyze which of these variables have the same meaning for the sense of well-being of young women and men.Participants and procedureThe sample consisted of 431 people (217 women and 214 men) aged 23 to 37 years (46% of the study group were people in relationships, and 54% were single).ResultsThe conducted research confirmed the relationship between the sense of eudaimonic well-being and having a partner, as well as the relationship between sense of intimacy with the partner and the assessment of the quality of the relationship, indicating some differences in this respect between women and men.ConclusionsIt seems that an important issue, worth investigating in our research, concerns the reasons why individuals live a single life (voluntary and involuntary singles), and whether or not they are satisfied with this kind of life. Just as in the case of relationships it is not only the fact of being in a relationship that makes a difference but the level of satisfaction with the relationship as well, also in the case of singles satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) with living alone may prove to be significant.

The main research objective of this study was seeking the predictive role of closeness to parents, attachment, identity style, identity commitment, type of relationship, and having children in intimacy among young women and men. Many studies indicate differences in the level of engagement, communication, and satisfaction in relationships. The study group comprised 227 people, including 114 women (M = 29.99, SD = 4.36), and 113 men (M = 30.00, SD = 4.33). A total of 40% of the subjects were married, and the remaining 60% subjects were in informal relationships, 101 people had children and the other individuals were childless. The following instruments were used: The Miller Social Intimacy Scale, questionnaires to assess closeness and attachment, and the Identity Style Inventory. The significance of the differences and the stepwise regression analysis were performed. The results of the study demonstrated a higher level of intimacy in a relationship with a partner among women than men. The nature of a relationship does not matter to the sense of intimacy. However, closeness to parents during childhood and adolescence, the model of interpersonal relations, and the identity style are predictors of intimacy in a relationship. The study results can be used in creating preventive and educational programs focused on family life and satisfied relationships.