Date

7-21-2022

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Mollie Boyd

Primary Subject Area

Psychology, General

Keywords

biblical beliefs, religious faith, marital satisfaction

Disciplines

Counseling | Religion

Abstract

A substantial body of research attests to religion's prominent influence on marital relationship quality. Aspects of religiosity that appear to enhance the quality of marital relationships include couples’ religious homogamy, prayer, religious involvement, spouses’ virtues, and sanctification of marriage. The couples reported studying the Scriptures to be beneficial in coping with life challenges and playing an important role in spouses’ conflict resolution. This study examines the association between marital satisfaction and biblical principles related to constructs such as forgiveness and commitment. It is assumed that relational virtues become relevant for marital quality as scriptural beliefs required by God. Spouses forgive and commit to their partner as a submission to God that works sanctification in their lives, impacting marital satisfaction. The quantitative survey method is used to assess the relationship between spouses’ scriptural beliefs, the faithfulness of their relationship with God, and marital satisfaction. The convenience sample is used to select 200 married Protestant Christians from the church members list to complete a Qualtrics survey. Multiple regressions analysis helps to illustrate how biblical beliefs relate to marital satisfaction. The study identifies scriptural beliefs that practitioners can utilize to help couples form and maintain well-functioning unions. Future research needs to search for more specific biblical beliefs that contribute to couples’ well-being and develop counseling programs for couples that nurture the manifestation of marital virtues through God’s sanctification process.

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