Evaluating the effectiveness of premarital prevention programs: A meta-analytic review of outcome research

Family Relations

Volumn 52, Issue 2, 2003, Pages 105-118

  Carroll, Jason S ^a   Doherty, William J ^b  

^a BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY   (United States)

^b NONE

Author keywords

Counseling; Outcome research; Premarital; Prevention; Relationships

Indexed keywords

EID: 0038335737     PISSN: 01976664     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1741-3729.2003.00105.x     Document Type: Review

References (67)

1. Avery, A., Ridley, C., Leslie, L., & Milholland, T. (1980). Relationship enhancement with premarital dyads: A six-month follow-up. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 8, 23-30.
2. Bader, E., Microys, G., Sinclair, C., Willet, E., & Conway, B. (1980). Do marriage preparation programs really work? A Canadian experiment. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 6, 171-179.
3. Bagarozzi, D. A., Bagarozzi, J. I., Anderson, S. A., & Pollane, L. (1984). Premarital education and training sequence (PETS): A 3-year follow-up of an experimental study. Journal of Counseling and Development, 63, 91-100.
4. Bagarozzi, D. A., & Rauen, D. (1981). Premarital counseling: Appraisal and status. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 9, 13-30.
5. Boike, D. (1977). The impact of a premarital program on communication process, communication facilitativeness, and personality trait variables of engaged couples. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Florida State University, Tallahassee.
6. Cate, R. M., & Lloyd, S. A. (1992). Courtship. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
7. Chadwick, B. A., & Heaton, T. B. (1999). Statistical handbook on the American family (2nd ed.). Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press.
8. Cicchetti, D., & Toth, S. L. (1992). The role of developmental theory in prevention and intervention. Development and Psychopathology, 4, 489-493.
9. Clark, S. C. (1995). Advance report of final divorce statistics, 1989 and 1990. Monthly Vital Statistics Report, 43(Suppl. 8), 1-20.
10. Cohen, J. H. (1969). Statistical power analyses for the behavioral sciences. New York: Academic Press.
11. Coie, J. D., Watt, N. F., West, S. G., Hawkins, J. D., Asarnow, J. R., Markman, H. J., Ramey, S. L., Shure, M. B., & Long, B. (1993). The science of prevention: A conceptual framework and some directions for a national research program. American Psychologist, 48, 1013-1022.
12. D'Augelli, A., Deyss, C., Guerney, B., Hershenberg, B., & Sbordfsky, S. (1974). Interpersonal skills training for dating couples: An evaluation of an educational mental health service. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 21, 385-389.
13. Doherty, W. J., & Carroll, J. S. (2002). The families and democracy project. Family Process, 41, 579-589.
14. Doherty, W. J., & Carroll, J. S. (2002). Health and the ethics of marital therapy and education. In J. Wall, D. Browning, W. J. Doherty, & S. Post (Eds.), Marriage, health, and the professions: If marriage is good for you what does this mean for law, medicine, ministry, therapy, and business? (pp. 208-232). Louisville, KY: William B. Eerdmans.
15. Freeman, D. (1965). Counseling engaged couples in small groups. Social Work, 10, 36-42.
16. Glendening, S. E., & Wilson, A. (1972). Experiments in group premarital counseling. Social Casework, 53, 551-562.
17. Guerney, G. B., Jr. (Ed.). (1977). Relationship enhancement. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
18. Gurman, A. S., & Kniskern, D. P. (1977). Enriching research on marital enrichment programs. Journal of Marriage and Family Counseling, 36, 3-11.
19. Hahlweg, K., Markman, H. J., Thurmaier, F., Engl, J., & Eckert, V. (1998). Prevention of marital distress: Results of a German prospective longitudinal study. Journal of Family Psychology, 12, 543-556.
20. Halford, W. K., Sanders, M. R., & Behrens, B. C. (2001). Can skills training prevent relationship problems in at-risk couples? Four-year effects of a behavioral relationship education program. Journal of Family Psychology, 15, 750-768.
21. Hinkle, J. E., & Moore, M. A. (1971). A student couples program. The Family Coordinator, 20, 153-158.
22. Holman, T. B. & Associates (Eds.). (2001). Premarital prediction of marital quality or breakup: Research, theory, and practice. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
23. Holman, T. B., & Linford, S. T. (2001). Premarital factors that influence later marital quality and stability. In T. B. Holman & Associates (Eds.), Premarital prediction of marital quality or breakup: Research, theory, and practice (pp. 1-27). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
24. Larson, J. H. (2002). Clinical update: Premarital assessment. Family Therapy Magazine, 36-42.
25. Larson, J. H., Newell, K., Topham, G., & Nichols, S. (2002). A review of three comprehensive premarital assessment questionnaires. Journal of Marriage and Family Therapy, 28, 233-239.
26. Larson, J. H., & Holman, T. B., (1994). Premarital predictors of marital quality and stability. Family Relations, 43, 228-237.
27. Linford, S. T., & Carroll, J. S. (2001). A century-end comprehensive review of premarital predictors of marital quality and stability. In T. B. Holman & Associates (Eds.), Premarital prediction of marital quality or breakup: Research, theory, and practice (pp. 263-300). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum.
28. Markman, H. J., Floyd, F. J., Stanley, S. M., & Storaasli, R. D. (1988). Prevention of marital distress: A longitudinal investigation. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 210-217.
29. Markman, H. J., & Hahlweg, K. (1993). The prediction and prevention of marital distress: An international perspective. Clinical Psychology Review, 13, 29-43.
30. Markman, H. J., Renick, M. J., Floyd, F. J., Stanley, S. M., & Clements, M., (1993). Preventing marital distress through communication and conflict management training: A 4- and 5-year follow-up. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 61, 70-77.
31. Meadows, M. E., & Taplin, J. (1970). Premarital counseling with college students: A promising triad. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 17, 516-518.
32. Miller, S., Nunnally, E. W., & Wackman, D. B. (1976). A communication training program for couples. Social Casework, 57, 9-18.
33. Most, R. K., & Guerney, B. G., Jr. (1983). An empirical evaluation of the training of volunteer lay leaders for premarital relationship enhancement. Family Relations, 32, 239-251.
34. Mudd, E., Freeman, C., & Rose, E. (1941). Premarital counseling in the Philadelphia Marriage Council. Mental Hygiene, 25, 98-119.
35. Nickols, S. A., Fournier, D. G., & Nickols, S. Y. (1986). Evaluation of a preparation for marriage workshop. Family Relations, 35, 563-571.
36. Notarius, C., & Markman, H. J. (1993). We can work it out: Making sense of marital conflict. New York: Putman.
37. Ooms, T. (1998). Toward more perfect unions: Putting marriage on the public agenda. Washington, DC: Family Impact Seminar (FIS).
38. Parish, W. E. (1992). A quasi-experimental evaluation of the Premarital Assessment Program for premarital counseling. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 13, 33-36.
39. Pedhazur, E. J., & Schmelkin, L. P. (1991). Measurement, design, and analysis: An integrated approach. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
40. Pino, C. (1982). Development and assessment of personalized programs for marriage preparation and enrichment, Family Perspective, 16, 33-39.
41. Pretorius, H. G., van Wyk, J. D., & Schepers, J. M. (1992). Die evaluering van 'n huweliksvoorbereidingprogram [The evaluation of a marital preparation program]. South African Journal of Psychology, 22, 140-146.
42. Ridley, C. A., Avery, A., Harrell, J. E., Haynes-Clements, L. A., McCunney, N. (1981). Mutual problem-solving skills training for premarital couples: A six-month follow-up. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 2, 178-188.
43. Ridley, C. A., Avery, A., Harrell, J. E., Leslie, L. A., & Dent, J. (1981). Conflict management: A premarital training program in mutual problem solving. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 9, 23-32.
44. Ridley, C. A., & Bain, A. (1983). The effects of a premarital relationship enhancement program on self-disclosure. Family Therapy, 10, 13-24.
45. Ridley, C. A., Jorgensen, S., Morgan, A., & Avery, A. (1982). Relationship enhancement with premarital couples: An assessment of effects on relationship quality. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 10, 41-48.
46. Ridley, C. A., Lamke, L. K., Avery, A. W., & Harrell, J. E. (1982). The effects of interpersonal skills training on sex-role identity of premarital dating partners. Journal of Research in Personality, 16, 335-342.
47. Rosenthal, R., & Rubin, D. B. (1982). A simple, general purpose display of magnitude of experimental effect. Journal of Educational Psychology, 79, 166-169.
48. Ross, J. (1977). The development and the evaluation of a group premarital counseling workshop. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. University of Northern Colorado, Greeley.
49. Russell, M. N., & Lyster, R. F., (1992). Marriage preparation: Factors associated with consumer satisfaction. Family Relations, 41, 446-451.
50. Schlein, S. (1971). Training dating couples in empathic and open communication: An experimental evaluation of a potential preventive mental health program. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park.
51. Schumm, W., & Denton, W. (1979). Trends in premarital counseling. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 5, 23-32.
52. Schumm, W. R., Resnick, G., Silliman, B., & Bell, D. B. (1998). Premarital counseling and marital satisfaction among civilian wives of military service members. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 24, 21-28.
53. Senediak, C. (1990). The value of premarital education. The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 11, 26-31.
54. Silliman, B., & Schumm, W. R. (2000). Marriage preparation programs: Literature review. The Family Journal, 8, 128-137.
55. Silliman, B., & Schumm, W. W. (1999). Improving the practice patterns in marriage preparation. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 25, 23-43.
56. Smith, M. L., Glass, G. V., & Miller, T. I. (1980). The benefits of psychotherapy. Baltimore. MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
57. Stahmann, R. F. (2000). Premarital counseling: A focus for family therapy. Journal of Family Therapy, 22, 104-116.
58. Stahmann, R. F., & Hiebert, W. J. (1997). Premarital and remarital counseling: The professional's handbook. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
59. Stahmann, R. F., & Salts, C. J. (1993). Educating for marriage and intimate relationships. In M. E. Arcus, J. D. Schvanevedlt, & J. J. Moss (Eds.), The Handbook for family life education (Vol. 2, pp. 33-61), Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
60. Stanley, S. M. (2000, March). Making a case for premarital education. Paper presented at the Revitalizing Marriage Conference at Brigham Young University, Provo, UT.
61. Stanley, S. M., Markman, H. J., Prado, L. M., Olmos-Gallo, A., Tonelli, L., St. Peters, M., Leber, B. D., Bobulinski, M., Cordova, A., & Whitton, S. W. (2001). Community-based premarital prevention: Clergy and lay leaders on the front lines. Family Relations, 50, 67-76.
62. Sullivan, K. T., & Bradbury, T. N. (1997). Are premarital prevention programs reaching couples at risk for marital dysfunction? Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65, 24-30.
63. U.S. Bureau of the Census. (2000), National population projections: Summary files (NP-T5). Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved September 18, 2002, from http://www.census.gov/population/www/projections/natsum-T5.html
64. Van Zoost, B. (1973). Premarital communication skills education with university students. The Family Coordinator, 22, 187-191.
65. Waite, L. J. (1995). Does marriage matter? Demography, 32, 483-504.
66. Waite, L. J., & Gallagher, M. (2000). The case for marriage: Why married people are happier, healthier, and better off financially. New York: Doubleday.
67. Wambolt, F. S., & Reiss, D. (1989). Defining a family heritage and a new relationship identity: Two central tasks in the making of a marriage. Family Process, 28, 317-335.