Communication patterns and conflict in marital dyads.
Responses--pauses, laughter, and interruptions (postulated to be communication techniques of couples with more equal power in decision making) and questions, silence time, and longer decision time (hypothesized to be communication techniques of couples in a dominant-submissive power structure)--of 68 middle-class suburban couples who volunteered to take the Inventory of Marital Conflicts were analyzed. Although study hypotheses were not supported, a high intercorrelation was revealed among communication variables hypothesized to be characteristic of power-sharing couples.
D000328:Adult; D003142:Communication; D003220:Conflict, Psychological; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage; D008875:Middle Aged; D011581:Psychological Tests