Actor–partner effects of irrational beliefs on marital adjustment in healthy and chronically diseased couples

Abstract

Although marital adjustment is inherently a dyadic process, and stressors such as chronic illness can be associated with couple functioning, limited research has examined how irrational beliefs are associated with marital adjustment from a dyadic perspective. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the actor and partner effects of irrational beliefs on marital adjustment between healthy couples and couples living with chronic illness. This cross-sectional dyadic path analysis was conducted in 2022 on 92 couples with common chronic illness and 92 matched healthy couples in Bushehr, Iran. Participants were selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using a demographic form, the Short Iranian Version of the Jones Irrational Beliefs Questionnaire, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Data were analyzed using SPSS 19 and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in Smart PLS 3. Results showed that in both groups, men’s irrational beliefs were significantly associated with their own marital adjustment (actor effect) (total effect = − 0.641; P < 0.001 for healthy couples, compared to total effect = − 0.445; P < 0.001 for couples living with chronic illness), whereas this association was not significant for women ( P > 0.05). Moreover, husbands’ irrational beliefs were positively related to their wives’ irrational beliefs (total effect = 0.487; P < 0.001 for healthy couples, compared to total effect = 0.665; P < 0.001 for couples living with chronic illness), and husbands’ marital adjustment was linked to their wives’ marital adjustment (total effect = 0.739; P < 0.001 for healthy couples, compared to total effect = 0.911; P < 0.001 for patient couples), indicating meaningful cross-partner effects. Most of these interrelations were stronger among couples living with chronic illness. These findings underscore the importance of examining marital adjustment from a dyadic rather than an individual perspective. They also suggest that assessing and addressing irrational beliefs within both partners may be beneficial for promoting marital adjustment, although this possibility requires evaluation in future intervention studies .