Network Structure of a Marital Satisfaction Index Among Married Indian Women: A Secondary Psychometric Analysis

Abstract

This study conducted a secondary psychometric analysis of survey data originally collected for a master's dissertation examining marital well-being among Indian women in arranged marriages (N = 55). A five-item Marital Satisfaction Index (MSI) was developed and validated (Cronbach's α = 0.957; unidimensional, 85.5% variance). Multiple regression (R² = 0.677) identified emotional bond as the strongest independent predictor (β = 0.706, p < .001). Mediation analysis showed emotional bonding partially mediates the criticism–satisfaction relationship (indirect = −0.35, 95% CI [−0.522, −0.184]). Psychological network analysis identified Overall Marital Happiness as the most central node (degree = 9, strength = 4.940) in a densely interconnected system (37 of 45 edges significant), with Toxic Criticism as the primary adversity hub (degree = 8), consistent with Gottman's cascade model. These findings provide the first psychometrically validated, network-informed measure of marital satisfaction derived from Indian arranged marriage data.