Communication Research Project

Amanda Martin

Problem Statement

Similarity as a predictor of marital satisfaction Similarity in communication patterns Family communication and childrens social behavior Research has not explored how family communication patterns (FCP) effects the quality of a future married relationships = A GAP! HYPOTHESIS: Spouses with similar family communication patterns during childhood will perceive higher levels of marital quality than those with different family communication patterns.

Conceptual:

Definitions

Family Communication PatternsThe routine or ordinary verbal and nonverbal behavior of family members.
The subjective evaluation of a married couples relationship on a number of dimensions: good adjustment, adequate communication, high levels of happiness, integration, and a high degree of satisfaction.

Marital Quality

Operational:

Family Communication Patterns

The Revised Family Communication Patterns (RFCP) Scale: 26 items measuring conversation- or conformity-orientation The Quality Marriage Index (QMI): 6 items measuring the overall quality of a marriage

Marital Quality

Literature Review
Theoretic Expectations:

Mcleod and Chaffee developed two dimensions of family communication: socio-orientation or conceptorientation. These were then divided into 4 sub-types: laissez-faire, protective, pluralistic, and consensual Neimeyer expanded on Byrnes Effectant-Arousal Model which suggests people look to others to have their attitudes and values validated. One function of marriage is to obtain consensual validation for one s interpretations of social reality and one form of validation involves the similar structuring of those interpretations.

Review of Literature:

FCP has been studied in relation to: Media usage Political participation Social behavior Marital Quality has been studied in these contexts: Similar values and perceptions indicated more satisfied and longer marriages Differing patterns of communication indicated lower satisfaction

Method

Methods used in past research: survey, interviewing, and case studies Quantitative- Questionnaire ..\..\survey.doc RFCP Scale and QMI incorporated into one questionnaire Sample: list of couples from counseling centers, churches, day cares, schools and senior citizen centers; 200 couples (400 individuals) randomly selected Distribution: call participants and administer questionnaire over the telephone All questions placed on 5-point Likert scale

Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages: Random sample- generalizable Cost-efficiency Speed in data collection Disadvantages: Self-report data can be biased or inaccurate Closed-ended questions may not indicate what people really feel