The effectiveness of Treatment based on reducing extramarital relationships on marriage instability and family functioning in couples

The extramarital relationships damage the emotional security and trust of the couple, and victims of betrayal experience strong negative emotions in this regard. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of extramarital relationship treatment on marital instability and family functioning in couples.   

The design of the semi-experimental research was pre-test-post-test with a control group. The statistical population included all couples with extramarital relationships who referred to Khomeinishahr city counseling centers in the year 2021. Sixteen couples were selected as a sample through purposive sampling method and were randomly divided into an experimental group (8 couples) and a control group (8 couples). The intervention group underwent 90-minute extramarital relationship treatment in 11 sessions and in a group once a week, but no action was taken in the case of the control group. The Edward, Johnson and Alan Booth's Marital Instability Questionnaire (1987) and Epstein, Baldwin and Bishop's Family Functioning Questionnaire (1950) were applied to them. Data analysis was done with descriptive tests (mean and standard deviation) and covariance analysis using SPSS version 23 software. P value less than 0.05 was considered as significant.

The results of covariance analysis indicated that the treatment based on reducing extramarital relationships had an effect on marital instability (F= 49.24) and family functioning (F= 17.58) in couples (P<0.001). The amount of this effect in the marriage instability variable based on the square of the eta coefficient was 0.57 and in the family function variable it was 0.31.

According to the results of this research, the treatment of extramarital relationships can be used to reduce the problems of couples and increase the stability of their lives.