A Study on the effectiveness and composition of a Marriage Enrichment Program: Based on reality therapy and rational-emotive therapy

The purpose of this study is to develop a Marriage Enrichment Program that can be applied to the actual lives of Korean families and couples, as well as adopted in family welfare programs. For this study, a quasi-experimental group design was employed and pre- and post- tests on Internal-External Control, Couple Communication, and Marital Satisfaction were conducted. Experimental participants consisted of six volunteer couples who responded to an advertisement by the Chonbuk Family Counseling Center printed in a daily newspaper. The experimental group received two hours of education on marital relationship enhancement every week for eight weeks. The control group received no such treatment. The effectiveness of the education was measured by Wilcox matched pair test, using a SAS program, as well as by the self-report of the participants. The results show that there was statistically significant improvement for the experimental group in all three areas of marriage-- internal control, couple communication, and marital satisfaction. In addition, the participants'evaluations were generally positive about the program. The participants reported that it was most helpful to learn through the educational program that individuals differ in basic needs and that they should not force personal beliefs on others. They also reported that their understanding of their spouse improved.

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