We-Ness as Indicator of Marital Conflict Risk Perception

The objective of the research was to reveal the role of joint identity of the spouses (we-ness) in keeping the marriage stable. In the course of the research we have analyzed essays on marital conflicts collected from 76 married respondents, 32 of whom reported that marital conflicts threaten stability of their marriage. Through content-analysis of the description of interaction in conflicts of the spouses we have established that we-ness is higher in those cases when spouses perceive their marriage as stable. We have found that the focus on the partner in description of marital conflicts is correlated with subjective perception of instability of partnership in marriage as well as with the idea that most conflicts between spouses are resolved suboptimally. During phase two of the research we have assessed efficiency of integral systemic family therapy focusing on constructive conflict resolution in two couples, where spouses think that marital conflicts threaten stability of their marriage. Following the therapy both couples have self-reported their relationship as more stable, the number of linguistic markers of we-ness has increased in their descriptions of conflicts; focus on self and on partner has decreased, which may be interpreted as evidence of efficiency of intervention. We further discuss possibilities for design of a robust diagnostic tool to measure we-ness and for design of therapy interventions targeting increase of relational focus and decrease of the focus on the partner. Key words: we-identity, joint identity, marital stability, reflection in couples, marital conflicts.