نورا پناه پوری

Lack of intimacy between couples can have inappropriate consequences for them. Therefore, it is important to identify the factors that play a role in the intimacy of couples and can have a preventive aspect on divorce. Therefore, the present study was conducted with the aim of determining the mediating role of marital self-disclosure in the relationship between intimacy and sexual performance and the tendency to divorce in couples about to divorce.

The current research was a descriptive type of structural equations. The statistical population included couples on the verge of divorce who referred to welfare counseling centers in Isfahan City in July 2023. Among the statistical population consisted of 115 couples (230 people), 70 couples (140 people) were selected using Krejcie and Morgan's table and by convenience sampeling method and responded to questionnaires of marital self-disclosure, intimacy, sexual performance, and tendency to divorce voluntarily. The data were analyzed by path analysis method.

The results of structural equations modeling showed that marital intimacy has a direct relationship with sexual performance (β=0.693) and marital self-disclosure (β=0.542) and an inverse relationship with the tendency to divorce (β=-0.693). Also, the results showed that marital self-disclosure has a significant relationship with sexual performance in a direct way (β=0.265) and with the tendency to divorce in an inverse way (β=-0.154) (p<0.05).

Marital self-disclosure plays a mediating role in the relationship between intimacy and sexual performance and tendency to divorce in couples about to divorce. Therefore, family counselors are recommended to pay more attention to intimacy between couples.