Turning Points That Led to Change in Married Couples' Approach to Conflict

Jana Schmidt

Date of Award

5-19-2014

Document Type

Undergraduate Capstone Project

Degree Name

Master of Professional Studies

Organizational Unit

University College, Communication Managament

Disciplines

Organiz. & Prof. Communication

First Advisor

Andrea Sisk

Keywords

Marital relationship, Conflict styles, Turning points, Change

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to understand whether or not people believe their approach to conflict changes, and if so, what turning points lead to change. Seven of the ten interviewees believed that either they or their spouses had made changes to their conflict approach. Turning points that led to long-term and mid-conflict changes were identified. Long-term turning points were relational growth or personal growth. Mid-conflict turning points were issue importance, spousal influence, or context. Some participants gave reasons for not changing their conflict approach, including the perceived importance of the conflict, the view that change was unnecessary, or because their approach was part of their identity. In contrast to popular findings, participants believed their conflict patterns had changed.

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. Permanently suppressed.

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