title: Marital conflict and adjustment: speech nonfluencies in intimate disclosure.
abstract: Speech nonfluency in response to questions about the marital relationship was used to assess anxiety. Subjects were 31 husbands and 31 wives, all white, college educated, from middle- to lower-middle-class families, and ranging from 20 to 30 years of age. Three types of nonfluencies were coded: filled pauses, unfilled pauses, and repetitions. Speech-disturbance ratios were computed by dividing the sum of speech nonfluencies by the total words spoken. The results support the notion that some issues within marriage are more sensitive and/or problematic than others, and that, in an interview situation, gender interacts with question content in the production of nonfluencies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Boston University, MA 02215.
authors.forename: E L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Paul
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Speisman
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Costos
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage; D012650:Self Disclosure; D014705:Verbal Behavior