The Role of Spiritual Intelligence and Resilience in Predicting Marital Intimacy of Mothers of Students with Learning Disabilities

The children with learning disabilities often affect the family and may cause tensions and conflicts between family members, especially mothers. Family life may become instable, and marital quality and intimacy between husband and wife may decrease. Most researchers believe that religious beliefs can significantly impact the strength of the family and marital relations. In recent decades, a new concept that psychologists have considered in the psychology of religion is spiritual intelligence. Spiritual intelligence includes a sense of meaning and a mission in life. It refers to a sense of sanctity in life, a balanced understanding of the value of the matter, and a belief in the betterment of the world. It is necessary to identify the factors related to marital intimacy—the firm foundation of family life. So, the present study aimed to investigate the role of spiritual intelligence and resilience in predicting the marital intimacy of mothers with students with learning disabilities.

The present research method was descriptive correlational. The study's statistical population consisted of all mothers of children with learning disabilities living in Karaj City, Iran, in the academic year 2018–2019. Of them, 100 mothers of children with learning disabilities were selected with the available sampling method. The inclusion criteria for mothers included having a minimum level of primary education, a definitive diagnosis of their child's learning disability by experts and educators of the Learning Disability Center, no mental illness based on the student's file form, and having consent to complete the questionnaire. The exclusion criteria for mothers were unwillingness to cooperate and Illiteracy. Data collection tools included King Spiritual Intelligence Scale (King, 2008), Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (Connor & Davidson, 2003), and Marital Intimacy Scale (Walker & Thompson, 1983). The obtained data were analyzed using descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise multiple linear regression) in SPSS 24. The significance level of the tests was set at 0.05.

The results showed that the standardized (regression) coefficients (Beta) were as follows for the components of critical existential thinking (p=0.002, β=0.260), personal meaning production (p<0.001, β=0.398), transcendental awarness (p=0.015, β=0.165), the consciousness state expansion (p=0.007, β=0.207), personal competence image (p<0.001, β=0.286), confidence in personal instincts (p=0.025, β=0.140), tolerating negative affections (p<0.001, β=0.288), inhibition/control (p=0.044, β=0.176) and the spirituality (p=0.016, β=0.215). Spiritual intelligence (66.4%) and resilience (82.7%) could also significantly predict marital intimacy (p<0.001).

Based on the study findings, the marital intimacy of mothers with students with learning disabilities can be provided by promoting their spiritual intelligence and resilience.